The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) has revoked the suspension on Sandeep Lamichhane, paving the way for him to play in Nepal's upcoming Cricket World Cup League 2 tri-series at home against Namibia and Scotland.
Britant Khanal, the CAN general manager, told ESPNcricinfo that the decision to remove the suspension and allow Lamichhane to play in the tri-series was with the condition that he would "respect the limitation prescribed" by the court that granted him bail in January this year. And if Nepal were to go on tour, Lamichhane's participation would depend on whether the court gave him permission for it or not.
Lamichhane, who was suspended in September last year after an arrest warrant was issued against him in Kathmandu over an alleged case of coercion of another person. He was granted bail for the equivalent of around USD 15,300 but was barred from leaving the country until the final verdict.
The news of Lamichhane's arrest warrant was made public on September 8, when he was in the West Indies as part of the Jamaica Tallawahs squad at the CPL. He returned to Nepal after that saying he would face the "baseless allegations" and was taken into custody by police in Kathmandu on October 6.
A statement from CAN acting secretary Prashant Vikram Malla said at the time that the suspension would remain in place pending a complete investigation. For his part, Lamichhane had said he would "fully cooperate in all stages of the investigation and will fight a legal battle to prove my innocence".
Lamichhane, 22, is by far Nepal's most high-profile cricketer, and the only one to have played in T20 leagues in most parts of the world, including in the IPL, the BBL, the PSL, the BPL, and the CPL.
He is also the world's second-fastest bowler to 50 ODI wickets and third-fastest to 50 T20I wickets, and last played international cricket in August 2022, in the T20I series against Kenya. He was also Nepal's captain at the time of the arrest warrant, a position he lost following his suspension.
Monty Desai joins Nepal as head coach
Monty Desai, until recently the assistant coach with the West Indies men's team, is set to take charge as Nepal head coach. Khanal said that CAN had recommended Desai's name to the Nepal Sports Council, whose ratification is mandatory for all such appointments.
Nepal's next assignment is the ODI tri-series, to be played in Kirtipur from February 14 to 21.