On Monday, August 10, 2026, the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) announced Sandeep Lamichhane as Nepal’s ODI captain for the ACC Men’s Premier Cup. After leading the team since 2022, Rohit Paudel is replaced by the 26-year-old leg-spinner.
On August 30, 2026, Sandeep Lamichhane will take over as captain as Nepal begins their campaign in Malaysia.
Sandeep Lamichhane is taking on a previous function. Before Paudel took over, he captained Nepal in 14 ODIs, and he has a strong individual record to support his reappointment. With 154 wickets in 77 ODIs, he is the fastest bowler from Nepal to achieve the 150-wicket mark in the format. Beyond ODIs, Sandeep Lamichhane achieved another milestone by being the first cricket player from Nepal to take a century of wickets in T20 Internationals, solidifying his position as the nation’s most renowned bowling talent in both white-ball formats.
Paudel had an excellent record as captain. He led Nepal to 11 victories from 12 ODIs during the ICC Cricket World Cup League 2, a run that demonstrated how far the team had come as a competitive unit under his direction. Paudel has been kept in the team and will participate in the ACC Men’s Premier Cup, giving the team access to his expertise even as the captaincy changes.
Why did someone else take over as captain?
On August 10, 2026, CAN announced the modification along with Nepal’s complete tournament roster. Nevertheless, the board did not offer a formal justification for the choice to transfer Paudel’s captaincy to Sandeep Lamichhane. As of the time of writing, no verified sources had provided a statement outlining the rationale for the appointment.
When does Nepal play in the ACC Men’s Premier Cup?
From August 30 to September 12, 2026, Malaysia will host the ACC Men’s Premier Cup 2026. One of the most challenging regional ODI competitions on the Asian cricket calendar, the ten-team field consists of the eight teams who competed in the 2024 tournament and the two finalists that advanced from the 2026 ACC Men’s Challenger Cup.
Sandeep Lamichhane (C), Aasif Sheikh, Arjun Kumal, Rohit Paudel, Dev Khanal, Dipendra Singh Airee, Sundeep Jora, Basir Ahamad, Ishan Pandey, Gulsan Jha, Sher Malla, Lalit Rajbanshi, Karan KC, and Hemant Dhami make up Nepal’s team for the 2026 ACC Men’s Premier Cup.
The core of the team that excelled under Paudel is still included in the selection, and Lamichhane will now be responsible for guiding that seasoned group into a competition that is crucial to Nepal’s reputation in the region.
