Nepal's Sandeep Lamichanne arrives in Sydney after Michael Clarke's recommendation

Nepal’s 16-year old leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichanne has arrived in Sydney and was greeted by former Australian skipper Michale Clarke at the Sydney airport. Lamichanne shot to fame after his impressive performances during the Under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh. The teenager is set to represent the Sydney-based club Western Suburbs and will also train at Clarke’s training academy in Sydney during his stay in Australia.

Sandeep created history at the ICC Under-19 World Cup by claiming the first hat-trick by a Nepalese cricketer against Ireland. He was also the second highest wicket-taker in the tournament, taking 14 wickets with a best of 5 for 27 against Ireland. His performances, in fact, saw legendary spinner Shane Warne heap praise on Lamichanne after the World Cup.

The youngster caught Clarke’s attention during the latter’s short stint as a player and had mentored him in Hong Kong earlier this year.

Clarke had conducted a coaching camp for the Hong Kong men’s and women’s cricket teams, donning the role of a mentor whilst playing as well for the Kowloons Canton side, in what was Hong Kong’s first-ever T20 tournament.

Sandeep was part of the same squad and now will have the opportunity to spend some more time with Clarke. Clarke was also optimistic about having Lamichanne in Sydney. "Sandeep is a fantastic young man who enjoys his cricket and is extremely passionate about the game," Clarke was quoted as saying in the release.

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"It is a really exciting opportunity to have such a talented Nepalese cricketer travel this distance to come and test his skills and improve his game at my academy. I am looking forward to working with him and all the boys and girls that will attend the 5-day live in camp starting September 26th.

"Sandeep will fit in well at my club, Wests have always gone out of their way to look after the younger players and he will be a great asset to the club this summer."

David Gilbert, the president of Western Suburbs, was excited about Lamichanne playing for their side. “We’ve seen a bit of YouTube footage of him, and he clearly give the ball a rip,” he said.

"It's a very exciting story because you don't hear of too many cricketers coming out of Nepal. We're fascinated to see how it plays out.

"Michael contacted the club probably about six weeks ago and said, 'this kid is very, very good and we'd love to get him out to Australia'. It's a big ask for a 16-year-old to come straight into a very strong club competition and perform, but Michael's playing the first three games for Wests and no doubt he will take him under his wing and look after him."

Both Clarke and Lamichanne will be featuring for Western Suburbs in their first match again Mosman on September 24 in Sydney. Lamichanne will be assisted by the local Nepalese community to settle in Sydney, where he will be staying with a local family.