Women’s cricket: Different opponents, same results
Kathmandu: The Nepali women’s cricket team recently participated in the four-nation Women’s Day Cup T20I tournament in Uganda.
Along with Uganda and Nepal, Hong Kong and Namibia played a total of 6 matches, 2-2 against each other.
Nepal won 2 out of 6 matches and lost 4. One of the wins was a hard-fought victory and the other was an easy one. Some of the losses were close, while others were embarrassing.
Overall, Nepal finished fourth out of four teams with two wins in six matches, which may not sound like much, but it is the reality. Nepal lost both matches to the top seed and shared wins and losses with Uganda and Hong Kong.
Before going into this series, the captain and coach had said that we had improved on many things and that we would return with a win, but Nepal has returned without a title and has only ‘learned’ once again.
Nepal had played a series at home last month, fielding two strong teams. Nepal, which had played 3 matches each against Thailand and the Netherlands, failed to win a single match.
The team, which began preparations for the Uganda tour after facing criticism for not winning a single game at home, was unanimous in its belief that many things had been improved before leaving for Uganda and that they would return after winning the series.
But Nepal could only win two games in the group stage in Uganda. But those wins were not enough to win the title. One of the two wins came after Nepal was eliminated from the finals.
Overall, the Nepali women’s team has won only 2 matches out of a total of 12 matches played since 2025. Nepal, which is winless at home, has won 2 matches away.
The Nepal Cricket Association has also arranged series targeting various competitions in the coming months. Another hope is that there will be some changes in the statistics of this defeat.
Lack of a winning mentality
There is a long-standing problem in Nepali women’s cricket that cannot be improved unless the players themselves self-criticize, and that is the ‘winning mentality’.
The Nepali team seems to lack a winning mentality. Although some senior players have shown some mental development, it does not seem to be enough for the team.
The mindset with which a player is playing affects many things, from handling pressure to being able to play under pressure. For that, one must be able to handle it.
All-rounder Sita Rana Magar, who is out of the current series due to injury, also says that the failure to develop this mentality in the Nepali team is a major weakness.
“It feels like we still don’t have a winning mentality, we’ve lost games that were very close,” Sita told Online News. “It feels like we’re not mentally strong. It feels like we’re losing wickets because we’re afraid of things that can be chased easily. We’re playing risky shots that we shouldn’t have taken and getting out.”
“Looking at the current results, they don’t look very positive, but we also need to look at how well they are preparing,” said Chhetri. “They seem to be lagging behind both physically and mentally because they haven’t been practicing much in the off-season.”
Poor performance in the middle overs
In most matches, Nepal puts the opposition under pressure by taking wickets early on. But then, when they fail to maintain their rhythm in the middle overs, the opposition gains the momentum of the game in their favor.
The Nepali team is constantly losing wickets due to lack of control while batting. Therefore, they need to be able to control the game in the middle overs. The Nepali team has been weak in that regard as well.
LB Chhetri has also pointed out that this should be viewed from a positive perspective. He believes that since the cricket calendar released by CAN includes many matches for the women’s team, the shortcomings seen now will gradually disappear if it is implemented.
“It is also important how much cricket women have played and how much exposure they have received,” he said. “The results don’t look that positive, but we also need to look at how well they are preparing.”
He is confident that the shortcomings seen now can be improved later. “There are some physical and mental weaknesses, including fitness, all of which are due to not having enough practice and preparation during the off-season,” Chhetri said.
“The cricket activities in the CAN calendar keep women’s cricket busy, due to which there is a possibility and an opportunity for them to improve the shortcomings they are currently seeing as they are able to practice and play regularly,” Chhetri added.
Chhetri says that along with the current physical and mental fitness problems, exposure will be beneficial and good success can be achieved in the coming years.
After the Women’s Day Cup in Uganda, Nepal is scheduled to travel to Bhutan next April to play. The date is yet to be made public. Before that, the Nepali team will practice here for some time.
Bhutan is a relatively weak team. This series will be the last for Nepal before playing the T20 World Cup Asia qualifiers in May.
This series can help Nepal understand its weaknesses more deeply and plan accordingly.
