Nepal cricketer Sandeep Lamichhane has been handed the jersey number one by Indian Premier League (IPL) side Delhi Daredevils ahead of the eleventh edition of the cash-rich league on Thursday. Leg-spinner Lamichhane created history after becoming Nepal's first cricketer to enter the lucrative IPL, with Delhi Daredevils picking him in the mega auction in January. The 17-year-old cricketer was picked up by Delhi for Rs 20 Lakh in the auction.
After getting himself picked in the IPL auction, his name was splashed across front pages of national newspapers and thousands took to social media to express their excitement. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba tweeted, "Not just me, but the entire nation is proud of you." Lamichhane, who has been likened to spin legend Shane Warne, made the meteoric rise to the IPL just two years after being selected for Nepal's national team.
"If you get the chance to play in the IPL, lots of players will be there who are very experienced and I think I will learn a lot," Lamichhane, the son of a railway worker said. Lamichhane's Delhi teammates will include Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and pacemen Trent Boult (New Zealand) and Kagiso Rabada (South Africa), among others. Lamichhane's talent was first noticed by former Nepal national cricket coach Pubudu Dassanayake, who spotted him at a training camp in 2015. The spin-bowling sensation then attracted the attention of Australian great Michael Clarke, when he played alongside the former captain in a Hong Kong Twenty20 Blitz tournament in 2016. Clarke invited Lamichhane to train at his cricket academy in Sydney, an experience the teenager described as unforgettable.