{ "id": "145477", "author": "26", "cnmid": "", "title": "Hard-hitting Nepali cop Dipendra looks to handcuff World Cup bowlers", "lang": "en", "series": "574", "cup_year": "2024", "article_type": "General", "excerpt": "Nepal's Dipendra Singh Airee is a 24-year-old policeman dubbed \"The Tiger\", who hopes to use his record-breaking batting skills to boost his nation at the T20 World Cup.", "subtype": null, "editor1": "

T20 World cup 2024 Updates:<\/strong> Nepal's Dipendra Singh Airee is a 24-year-old policeman dubbed "The Tiger", who hopes to use his record-breaking batting skills to boost his nation at the T20 World Cup.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Last September, Nepal's victory by a staggering 273 runs against Mongolia was the biggest margin by runs in all T20s -- but Airee's astonishing part in that win included the fastest T20 fifty in just nine balls.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

The rising star smashed sixes from each of the first six balls he faced, before completing his quickfire half-century to beat the previous record of 12 balls.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Then in April against Qatar, he became the third man to hit six sixes in a single over in a T20 international.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

But he has also shown himself to be a stellar fielder, pulling off sensational catches and spectacular run outs -- and hopes to provide a performance to make his Himalayan nation proud.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"I will do my best to play a role to make the team victorious", Airee told Nepal's Kantipur Television earlier this month.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"I get motivated by the support I get from everyone," he added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"They call me by the name 'tiger' and that motivates me further. It makes me want to do as much as possible, to give my 110 percent."<\/p>\r\n\r\n

- 'Among the finest'-<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Nepal head to the 20-nation World Cup sitting a lowly 17th in the ICC rankings, but Nepal's chief selector Dipendra Chaudhary said Airee could make all the difference.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"His off-spin bowling is among the finest," Chaudhary told AFP. "His fitness, work ethic, and team spirit stand out."<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"I believe when we look back he will be counted as one of Nepal's best players in history", Chaudhary added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"He is very talented and hardworking. He began his career as a medium-paced bowler before transitioning into a batsman and now serving as an all-rounder."<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Airee said he was "very happy" to be going to the World Cup, recalling how he watched the last tournament from Nepal on a giant screen projected in a market.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"When we qualified, I was crying from the bottom of my heart," he told Kantipur in an interview.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

- 'Remarkably gifted' -<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Humble and media-shy, Airee first played in the 2016 Under-19 World Cup.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"He was raw but remarkably gifted: he was noticed by the system at a young age," Chaudhary said, adding that the policeman has a natural "shy demeanour".<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"He is extremely humble and speaks very little," he said. "He is very ethical in his work and spends most of his time on the ground."<\/p>\r\n\r\n

The T20 World Cup begins Saturday, co-hosted by the United States and West Indies, with Nepal's first game on June 4 in Dallas.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"We have prepared enough for the World Cup, but frankly other teams are better than us," Chaudhary said. "But it is a game, and we hope for good games and a good performance."<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Nepal's preparation had been overshadowed by a push to include controversial star Sandeep Lamichhane in the squad, after the ex-skipper and spin bowler was denied a US visa.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Lamichhane, 23, was once the poster boy for cricket in Nepal, but was not included in the original squad because he was convicted of raping a young woman in a Kathmandu hotel in 2022.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

His eight-year sentence for rape was quashed on appeal this month.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Nepal will play their first two group games in the United States followed by two in the West Indies.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

"More than a win or loss, we are preparing for the teams to play good cricket," Chaudhary added.<\/p>\r\n\r\n

Also Read: <\/b> T20WC 2024 Schedule & Squads<\/a><\/p>

"In the future, that will help us have big nations come and play on our turf or invite us. That will be the biggest win."<\/p>\r\n", "image": "https:\/\/img.cricketnmore.com\/uploads\/2024\/05\/AFP--20230904--33UB7PC--v1--HighRes--CricketAsia2023IndNepOdi.jpg", "alt_img": "Dipendra Singh Airee", "alt_title": "T20 World Cup 2024", "image1": null, "video": null, "seo_title": "Hard-hitting Nepali cop Dipendra looks to handcuff World Cup bowlers On Cricketnmore", "seo_desc": "Nepal's Dipendra Singh Airee is a 24-year-old policeman dubbed \"The Tiger\", who hopes to use his record-breaking batting skills to boost his nation at the T20 World Cup.", "seo_keywords": "Dipendra Singh Airee, T20 World Cup 2024, Nepal Cricket", "tag": null, "tagging": "Dipendra Singh Airee, T20 World Cup 2024, Nepal Cricket", "status": "1", "img_rpt": "0", "google": "1", "standout": "0", "edapps": "0", "pulse": "0", "no_index": "0", "feed": "0", "fixture": null, "slug": "hard-hitting-nepali-cop-dipendra-singh-airee-looks-to-handcuff-world-cup-bowlers", "user_id": "0", "read_count": "1", "ians_date": null, "ians_time": null, "server_time": null, "trash": "0", "view_count": "1762", "page_break": "0", "instant_articles": "1", "auto_link": "1", "created": "2024-05-29 07:58:35", "updated": "2024-05-29 07:58:35", "img_from": "Image Source: Google", "img_source": null, "schedule_publish": null, "news_keywords": "Dipendra Singh Airee, T20 World Cup 2024, Nepal Cricket", "livescore_text": null, "livescore_link": null, "btn_text": null, "resend_feed": "0", "google_feed": "0", "read_more": "0", "posted_by": "1", "jio_date": "2024-05-29 07:58:35", "scheduled": "0", "news_now": "1", "breaking_news": "1", "google_date": null, "featured": "1", "pred_match_id": "Select", "article_content_type": null, "link": "https:\/\/www.cricketnmore.com\/cricket-news\/hard-hitting-nepali-cop-dipendra-singh-airee-looks-to-handcuff-world-cup-bowlers-145477" }