The International Cricket Council (ICC) has once again set conditions for Nepal to host its World Cricket League Championship (WCLC) home matches.

The world cricket governing body on Monday set April 16 and 18 date for Nepal’s third round home games against Namibia but under certain conditions. In a release, ICC said Nepal’s hosting rights is “subjected to infrastructure, security assessment and approval”.

ICC had also set similar conditions for Nepal in hosting their second round fixtures against Papua New Guinea (PNG). ICC later relocated the fixtures to the United Arab Emirates. Nepal lost both the matches played on November 16 and 18.

The Tribhuvan University Stadium—Nepal’s only international standard stadium—is currently getting a facelift and was supposed to be over by early November. However, the political problems in the country and most recently, the unofficial blockade imposed by India has slowed down the construction work that began on May 22. In a Rs 70-million-project looked after by the Youth and Sports Ministry with a six-month deadline, TU grounds is getting a new pavilion, expanded gymnasium, media centre, TV tower and officials’ changing room.

Nepal has not hosted any international event after staging the 2013 ACC Twenty20. They hosted a Tribute Match for deceased Australian Test opener Phil Hughes and a series against Marylebone Cricket Club in TU but both were unofficial games.

Winless Nepal are currently at the bottom of the eight-team WCLC that sends the top four teams directly into the 2018 ICC 50-over World Cup Qualifiers to be held in Bangladesh. Leaders Hong Kong, Scotland, the Netherlands, UAE and Kenya are other teams in WCLC.

Nepal play MCC at Lord’s on July 16

KATHMANDU: Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC)—world’s oldest cricket club—is hosting Nepal at its home ground Lord’s on July 16. The match will be played a day after the final day of England versus Pakistan Test. “The teams will play a 50-over match on the same pitch that was used for the Test match,” MCC said on its website.

The match will be played to mark a 200-year bilateral relationship between England and Nepal. MCC recently visited Nepal playing six matches against different teams.