Big Stars In Nepal Premier League 2024: Full List Players Of All Teams In Inaugural NPL Edition

The Nepal Premier League (NPL) 2024 will run from November 30 to December 21 with as many as eight teams fighting for the inaugural championship title in an ever-increasing crowded T20 cricket calendar. (More Cricket News)

Despite limited resources and logistical constraints, the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) -- the organisers of the NPL -- and the franchises have managed to convince some big stars to join their ambitious project. On November 14, former India opener and Indian Premier League's second-highest scorer Shikhar Dhawan jumped on the NPL bandwagon.

The 38-year-old southpaw from Delhi will lead Karnali Yaks -- a team with West Indian wicket-keeper Chadwick Walton, Pakistani all-rounder Mohammad Hussain Talat, and Hong Kong batter Babar Hayat as other foreign players.

Dhawan, however, is not the only high-profile player who will take a Himalayan sojourn this winter. New Zealand legends Martin Guptill (Biratnagar Kings) and James Neesham (Janakpur Bolts), and England death-bowling expert Ravi Bopara (Chitwan Rhinos) have been roped in as captains of their respective franchises.

CAN, according to Nepali media, had also approached Australian swashbuckler David Warner for a possible stint this season.

And of course, Nepalese cricket stars will be there to showcase their talent during this month-long cricket carnival. Sandeep Lamichhane, Kushal Malla, Aasif Sheikh, Sompal Kami, Rohit Paudel, Karan KC, Rohit Paudel, Kushal Bhurtel, and Dipendra Singh Airee have all been given due respect during the NPL player auction and were picked as 'Marquee Players' of their respective teams.

Check the full list of NPL 2024 squads:

Biratnagar Kings: Sandeep Lamichhane (Marquee Player), Lokesh Bam, Pratish GC, Bashir Ahmad, Rajesh Pulami Magar, Jitendra Kumar Mukhiya, Anil Kharel, Dipak Bohara, Subhash Bhandari, Naren Bhatta, Mrinal Gurung, Chris Sole, Martin Guptill, Nicholas Kirton, Aqib Ilyas, Ismat Alam. Head coach: Kevin O'Brien

Chitwan Rhinos: Kushal Malla (Marquee Player), Rijan Dhakal, Kamal Singh Airee, Sharad Vesawkar, Bipin Rawal, Santosh Karki, Dipesh Shrestha, Amar Singh Rautela, Deepak Bohara, Ranjeet Kumar, Gautam KC, Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton, Marchant De Lange, Luc Benkenstein, Hassan Eisakhil. Head coach: Umesh Patwal.

Janakpur Bolts: Aasif Sheikh (Marquee Player), Lalit Rajbanshi, Anil Kumar Sah, Rupesh K Singh, Kishore Mahato, Aakash Tripathi, Shubh Kansakar, Sher Malla, Hemant Dhami, Arniko Prasad Yadav, Tul Bahadur Thapa Magar, James Neesham, Sohaib Maqsood, Lahiru Milantha, Muhammad Mohsin, Joshua Tromp. Head coach: Pubudu Dassanayake

Karnali Yaks: Sompal Kami (Marquee Player), Gulshan Kumar Jha, Nandan Yadav, Mausam Dhakal, Arjun Gharti, Dev Khanal, Rit Gautam, Bhuban Karki, Dipendra Rawat, Dipak Dumre, Unish Bikram Singh Thakuri, Shikhar Dhawan, Chadwick Walton, Babar Hayat, Hussain Talat.

Head coach: Gyanendra Malla

Kathmandu Gurkhas: Karan KC (Marquee Player), Shahab Alam, Bhim Sharki, Rashid Khan, Shankar Rana, Dipesh Prasad Kandel, Sumit Maharjan, Krishna Karki, Bibek KC, Pratik Shrestha, Raju Rizal, Michael Levitt, Gerhard Erasmus, Stevie Sean Eskinazi, Dan Douthwaite.

Head coach: Basanta Shahi

Lumbini Lions: Rohit Kumar Paudel (Marquee Player), Surya Tamang, Bibek Yadav, Sundeep Jora, Aashutosh Ghiraiya, Tilak Raj Bhandari, Durgesh Gupta, Arjun Saud, Dinesh Adhikari, Abhishesh Gautam, Bikash Aagri, Unmukt Chand, Ben Cutting, Tom Moores.

Head coach: Nandan Phadnis

Pokhara Avengers: Kushal Bhurtel (Marquee Player), Sagar Dhakal, Aakash Chand, Kiran Kumar Thagunna, Narayan Joshi, Bipin Khatri, Dilip Nath, Trit Raj Das, Sunam Gautam, Dinesh Kharel, Amrit Gurung, Anderson Phillip, Bas De Leede, Andries Gous, Matt Critchley, Raymon Reifer, Michael Leask.

Head coach: Rajiv Kumar

Sudurpaschim Royals: Dipendra Singh Airee (Marquee Player), Md Aarif Sheikh, Abinash Bohara, Binod Bhandari, Ishan Pandey, Arjun Kumal, Khadak Bahadur Bohara, Naresh Budhayer, Bhoj Raj Bhatta, Amit Shrestha, Naren Saud, Rohan Mustafa, Scott Kuggeleijn, Saif Zaib, Brandon McMullen.

Head coach: Jagat Tamata

All 32 matches, including the playoffs, will likely be played at the historic Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur, some five kilometres southwest of the Nepalese capital of Kathmandu.

Live streaming and telecast details are yet to be confirmed. But reports in Nepali media claimed that CAN is planning to "finalize a deal to broadcast NPL matches live on India’s Star Sports, despite local broadcasters’ disappointment and legal concerns."