Kathmandu, June 12           

Nepal Storm today bought four Nepali cricketers in the team at an auction for the Asian Premier League which will be played at the Tribhuvan University Stadium from June 19 to July 4.

Nepal Storm, who have picked up former national team opener Paresh Lohani as an iconic player, bought Bhupendra Thapa for INR 100,000 (Rs 160,000), while Sidhanta Raj Shahi was sold for INR 70,000.

Similarly, Amar Singh Routela and Rajbir Singh earned INR 60,000 each during the auction here today. The four players had registered for the auction.

Lohani said he was surprised of the negativity regarding the APL. “This is a good tournament and five Nepali cricketers will be playing in the first edition of the event,” said Lohani.

A total of six franchise-based teams, including Nepal Storms, will participate in the tournament being organised by the Ultimate Sports Management. Chief Patron of the ASL Swami Chinmayananda, who is the Vice-president of SantMahasabha, India launched the event yesterday.

Former Sri Lanka skipper Tillakratne Dilshan will lead the Indian Stars, while Ajay Ratra of India is the mentor of the team. Swapnil Patil is the skipper of Nepal Storm with Dimitri Mascarenhus as the team mentor, while Abdul Shakoor of the UAE is the team captain of Dubai Warriors with Charles Coventry of Zimbabwe as the mentor.

Likewise, Al Amin Hossain of Bangladesh will lead the Bangladesh Tigers, while Justin Kemp of South Africa is the mentor of the team. Rana Naveed Hassan and Imran Nazir, both from Pakistan, are the captain and mentor of Afghanistan Bulls, while Farveez Maharoof of Sri Lanka will lead the Sri Lanka Lions with Rusty Theron of South Africa as the team mentor.