Former India pacer Manoj Prabhakar has been appointed head coach of the Nepal men’s cricket team, the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) has announced.
Prabhakar will succeed 52-year-old former Sri Lanka Test wicketkeeper-batter Pubudu Dassanayake, who recently resigned from his position and took over as the head coach of the Canada men’s team.
Announcing the development, CAN said in a statement: “Former Indian star all-rounder and Ranji trophy winning coach, Mr. Manoj Prabhakar from India has been appointed as the Head Coach of Nepal National Cricket Team.”
“Mr. Prabhakar has played 39 Test matches and 130 One-Day Internationals for India. As a coach, he has experience of working as coach of Afghanistan Cricket Team along with Ranji Trophy teams of Delhi, Rajasthan and UP Cricket Association,” it added.
On the other hand, commenting on his appointment, Prabhakar said the talent in Nepal cricket was something that excited him. “Seeing the interest for cricket in Nepal, their talent and skill level, I’m really looking forward to working with the Nepal cricket team to make them into a cricketing force to be reckoned with,” he expressed.
Notably, Prabhakar was a bowling all-rounder for India and represented the country in 169 internationals. He has worked as a head coach for three Ranji Trophy teams, and served as bowling coach for Afghanistan in 2016, according to ICC.
Nepal are currently placed second from the bottom, with eight wins in 20 matches in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 table.