The second season of the Nepal Premier League kicks off Monday, with defending champions Janakpur Bolts taking on Kathmandu Gorkhas in the tournament opener, launching what the Cricket Association of Nepal has branded as the ‘Festival of Himalayas’.
Millions of Nepali fans have embraced the domestic T20 cricket tournament as a new festival in the Nepali calendar.
“We are all set to make the second season bigger and better than the inaugural one, which was itself historical,” Chatur Bahadur Chand, president of the Cricket Association of Nepal, said during a press meet organised by Nepali cricket’s governing body to inform about the tournament’s preparations, on Saturday. “We have almost completed our preparations.”
After the first NPL concluded on December 21 last year, the CAN closed the TU International Cricket Ground for major renovations—construction of concrete parapets with structured seating for 10,000 fans and the installation of floodlights to host night matches.
And in around eight months, the TU International Cricket Ground, the home of Nepali cricket, has turned into a stadium. The Janakpur vs Kathmandu fixture, starting at 4pm, will mark not only the inauguration of the second NPL but the ushering of Nepali cricket into a new era—it will be the first match being played under the floodlights at the TU ground and fans seated on a proper parapet rather than the grassy slope.
“The technical team assured us that the floodlights would be fully operational to light up the TU Stadium, starting from the first match,” Paras Khadka, secretary at the CAN, said in the press meet while responding to the concerns over the floodlights’ readiness. “We trust them and have revealed the fixtures for matches in both day and night time.”
Of the 32 total matches—28 in the league stage and four in the playoffs—23 are being played under the lights. On Saturday night, all six floodlight pillars were successfully tested, illuminating the venue perfectly.
At least Rs400 million in earnings
The CAN expects to earn around Rs400 million from the second season of the NPL.