Kathmandu, January 5 The skippers and owners of the franchise-based Sagarmatha Cement Dhangadhi Premier League were revealed here amidst a press meet today. A total of six teams will take part in the tournament, organised by Dhangadhi Cricket Academy, scheduled for March 18 to April 1 at the SSP cricket grounds in Dhangadhi. National cricket team skipper Paras Khadka will lead the Team Chauraha Dhangadhi owned by Raj Kumar Shrestha, while his deputy Gyanendra Malla is the team captain of CYC Attariya which is owned by Sirjanshil Youth Club. Sharad Vesawkar is the skipper of the Paras Luniya-owned Biratnagar Kings, whereas Basant Regmi will lead Kathmandu Goldens owned by Golden Gate International College. Shakti Gauchan is the skipper of Rupandehi Challengers owned by SR Group, while Binod Bhandari will lead Kanchapur Iconic owned by Pitambar Joshi. The captains were selected through a draw from among the 217 players who registered for the tournament and they will earn Rs 150,000 each, informed the organisers. “The remaining players will be auctioned on Saturday and we made it mandatory for all the teams that each of them must have at least four uncapped players in the squad,” said DCA President Subash Shahi. The organisers have set Rs 50,000 as base amount for national team players with at least 15 caps, while the base amount for national team players with less than 15 caps and U-19 team members is Rs 30,000. Likewise, the base amount for former age-group players is set at Rs 25,000 and the money for uncapped players is Rs 20,000. “We are still working with Cricket Players Association of Nepal (CPAN) on the details of the players’ auction but we have set a limit of Rs 700,000 for each team,” Shahi said.

Division of players for auction

Base amount Players’ categories Rs 50,000 Current national team players with at least 15 caps Rs 30,000 National players (less than 15 caps), U-19 players Rs 25,000 Former age-group team members Rs 20,000 Uncapped players

DPL participating teams, skippers, owners and co-owners

Team Skippers Owners Co-owners CYC Attariya Gyanendra Malla Sirjanshil Youth Club Biratnagar Kings Sharad Vesawkar Mahalaxmi Cable Prafulla Vaidhya Kathmandu Goldens Basant Regmi Golden Gate International College Rupandehi Challengers Shakti Gauchan SR Group Kanchanpur Iconic Binod Bhandari Pitambar Joshi Ashok Pandey, Dhiraj Bohara, Dr Netra Raj Chataut, Laxmi Pandey Team Chauraha Dhangadhi Paras Khadka Raj Kumar Shrestha, Surya Gurung, Shahnawaj Alam, Gagan KC, Pushkar Ojha The teams will play against each other in round robin format and the top four will make it to the playoff. The winner of the match between top two will make it to the final, while the losing team will get another chance to make it to the championship match. They will play against the winners of the third and fourth placed match. The champions will earn Rs 1.5 million, while the runners-up will get Rs 700,000. “This is the biggest tournament in the history of Nepali cricket in terms of cash purse as we have set aside Rs 2.8 million in prize money,” said DCA President Shahi. The man-of-the-match in every game will receive Rs 10,000, while the player-of-the-series will get a TVS RTR 200 Apache motorcycle sponsored by Jagdamba Motors and JB Automobile. The estimated budget of the tournament is Rs 10.6m. The organisers are also establishing a fund to help in the education of children of late cricket coach Arjun Khadka apart of contributing to Dream Fapla project. “We will contribute 20 per cent of the gate collection for the education of the coach’s children, while we will give 15 per cent each to Dream Fapla project to construct an international stadium in Dhangadhi and the participating teams,” Shahi added. Ghorahi Cement Pvt Ltd is the main sponsor of the tournament, while Hotel Divotee, Bells Café, Om Palace, Raika Tours and Travels, Dakshinkali Incorporated, Hotel Jalsa and Chaudhary Book Depot are the co-sponsors. Likewise, the tournament is supported by National Sports Council, Nepal Tourism Board, Kailali District Development Committee, Dhangadhi Municipality, CPAN, Hotel Entrepreneurs Association Kailali, Far-western Transportation Entrepreneurs Association and Kailali Chamber of Commerce and Industry.