On the eve of his team’s Asia Cup 2023 clash against India, Nepal skipper Rohit Paudel expressed his side’s excitement to face the Men in Blue while also adding that they have plans to tackle star batters – Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
India and Nepal are due to square off at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Monday (September 4).
Pakistan have already made it to the Super-4 stage from Group A on the basis of a crushing win over Nepal and a washout against arch-rivals India, which caused them to share a point each.
Now, India (1 point) and Nepal (0 points) are facing a must-win situation to qualify for the Super-4 stage.
"We are excited to play against India. India is a big country. We are all excited to represent Nepal against India at the biggest stage," Rohit Paudel said in a pre-match press conference.
Talking about Virat and Rohit, Paudel stated, "Virat and Rohit have been the stars for their country for over ten years. We have made plans to tackle them and hopefully, we will execute them tomorrow."
The Nepal captain also termed Virat Kohli as an "inspiration" for all.
"Virat is an inspiration for all of us, not only for his work ethic but also his discipline, on and off the field," he said.
Paudel expressed happiness because of fans' response despite the heavy defeat to Pakistan in the Asia Cup opener in Multan.
"Our players have been working really hard for two or three years. That is why we are here. For the last two three generations, our seniors tried a lot (for big opportunities), we got this opportunity to play. We want to represent them in the match," he added.
Rohit Paudel admitted that the clash with India will be a "fanboy moment" for the Nepal team as the Men in Blue have a number of superstars in their ranks.
"But on the field, it will be a game that both of us will be wanting to win," he concluded.
India Squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ravindra Jadeja, Akshar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumraj, Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Sanju Samson (travelling reserve).
Nepal Squad: Rohit Paudel (c), Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh, Bhim Sharki, Kushal Malla, Aarif Sheikh, Dipendra Singh Airee, Gulshan Jha, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Sandeep Lamichhane, Lalit Rajbanshi, Pratish GC, Mousom Dhakal, Sundeep Jora, Kishore Mahato, Arjun Saud.
(With ANI Inputs)
