Sandeep Lamichhane denied USA visa for T20 World Cup

Star Nepal spinner Sandeep Lamichhane has been denied the USA visa for the upcoming T20 World Cup. The 23-year-old fought a long battle against rape charges and was recently cleared by the Supreme Court and was expected to travel with Nepal for the mega tournament, which is slated to begin on June 1. Notably, he was suspended from all forms of the game following the rape charges but the verdict of the court allowed him to make a return.

Previously, the Nepal Cricket President, Chatur Bahadur Chand stated that the board will do everything to make sure Lamichhane travels with the squad for the T20 World Cup. He revealed that the team has the right to change personnel till May 25 and they would do the necessary to facilitate the spinner in the 15-member squad.

“He has been set free by the law, and we are happy for him. He was sentenced to jail by the lower courts, but today the high court set him free. We have removed the suspension as well, and we have time until the 25th to include him in the World Cup squad,” Chand said.

Also Read: ICC grants Nepal permission to add Sandeep Lamichhane to T20 World Cup squad

However, Lamichhane on May 22 tweeted and brought to notice that he hasn’t been granted a visa for travel to the USA. The cricketer claimed that something similar happened in 2019 when he was denied a visa to play in the Caribbean Premier League. Meanwhile, he also issued an apology to all the well-wishers of Nepal Cricket.

“And the @USEmbassyNepal did it again what they did back in 2019, they denied my Visa for the T-20 World Cup happening in USA and West Indies. Unfortunate. I am sorry to all the well wishers of Nepal Cricket,” Lamichhane wrote on his X profile.

Notably, Nepal are drawn in the same group as Bangladesh, Netherlands, South Africa and Sri Lanka. They will play their first game against the Netherlands on June 4 and ahead of that, the Rohit Paudel-led side will also play a friendly match against Canada on May 27.