Confident Melbourne Stars spinner Sandeep Lamichhane is leading wicket taker in Big Bash League
He’s played under some of the biggest names in world cricket and is taking the Big Bash by storm. But there’s more to Melbourne Stars sensation Sandeep Lamichhane than just his bowling, writes Sam Landsberger.
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Sandeep Lamichhane’s boyish good looks are punctuated by a cheeky grin and two sparkling ear rings.
“Maybe the batsman will get distracted by them and he doesn’t look at my ball,” Lamichhane laughs.
A thick white watch sits on ‘Sandy’s’ left wrist and a colourful tattoo wrapped around his arm signifies karma — “whatever you do comes back to you”. It is the most vibrant of seven ink markings.
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Well, Lamichhane must have lived a saintly childhood.
Because in 2018 he has played under former Test captains Ricky Ponting (Delhi) and Stephen Fleming (Melbourne Stars), alongside Chris Gayle (T10 tournament) and launched a loud lbw shout with his first ball to AB de Villiers in the Indian Premier League.
Lamichhane will learn from a third ex-Test captain in January, when Pakistan’s Waqar Younis coaches a Bangladesh Premier League franchise set to be captained by David Warner.
Ponting, who gave Lamichhane his IPL debut as a 17-year-old, has anointed him “the king of Nepal already”.
Glenn Maxwell played with Lamichhane at Delhi and captains him at the Stars.
“He’s certainly confident,” Maxwell said.
“He’s got a couple of earrings, a bit of bling and he’s released three singles as well as a singer.”
Lamichhane — who writes his own lyrics and then sends them to established musicians for a polish — dismissed his first music single.
“The first one was not that much good,” the romantic songwriter and guitarist said.
“That was not a good song, but I’m coming up with good songs now.”
Thankfully his bowling has him climbing the charts quicker than his songs.
He is the crooning leggie and Sandeep’s squeal has been the soundtrack of the Stars’ season as the Big Bash League’s leading wicket-taker.
“Yeah, he’s got some spunk,” Fleming said.
“He’s very confident and very self-assured, which, for a young guy playing in a big stadium in the IPL, was an interesting sign for me.”
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Ponting parachuted Lamichhane on to cricket’s big stage via the IPL, but he appealed to Michael Clarke long before that.
They have shared a close bond since meeting as Kowloon Cantons teammates at a Hong Kong T20 tournament in 2016.
“We talk nearly every day and he has become a little brother to me,” Clarke told the Herald Sun from India last week.
“We met when he was 15 and had a couple of net sessions together.
“I saw a talent who wanted to learn and get better, so I sponsored him and brought him to Australia to spend a week at my cricket academy.
“I then approached my grade club, Western Suburbs, to see if they would allow him to play for them for the summer.
“He is an exceptional young man and very talented leg spinner who just needed an opportunity. His dream was to play in the BBL and now he’s achieving it. I’m so proud of him.”
In Lamichhane’s first over for the Stars he bagged 2-3, and when his second deliver removed Thunder captain Shane Watson the teen tweaker took off like a greyhound.
“If you go back to the first game, Maxwell interrupted his Cristiano Ronaldo celebration by catching him mid-air,” Stars opener Ben Dunk said.
The image of Maxwell catching Lamichhane is his Facebook cover photo, where he has more than 206,000 fans. He also has 114,000 Twitter followers.
In comparison, Collingwood captain Scott Pendlebury has 98,000 and 64,000.
Fancy that. The king of Nepal, Michael Clarke’s baby brother, three music singles released and more popular than Pendles — and all by the age of 18.
“He bowls all day, every day with a smile on his face,” Ponting said during the IPL.
“He absolutely loves it. We’ve had certain training sessions where we’ve had to tell him to stop bowling.”
Lamichhane grew up bowling on cement pitches in southern Nepal and chose leg spin after watching videos of Shane Warne.
“Cricket was the only thing I used to follow during my childhood,” he said.
“There was nothing to do because I am not a good player of football and I didn’t follow any other sports.
“I bowl leg spin and googly and slider and front flipper. Just the front flipper — it’s not the exact (same) like Shane Warne used to do.”
At the Stars Lamichhane took 3-51 from his first 55 leg-breaks and 3-13 from his first 15 googlies.
Teammate Travis Dean said he can’t pick Lamichhane in the nets. His wrong-un is harder to pick than the Powerball numbers.
Ponting only picked Lamichhane after Delhi couldn’t play finals and then watched him take five wickets in a 2-1 finish to the season, including a win over eventual champion Chennai.
“He got some big scalps in the IPL,” Maxwell said.
“He bowled beautifully for Delhi. He came in late in the tournament and made an impact.”
In Dubai at the recent T10 tournament, Lamichhane claimed 3-17 as man-of-the-match in the first game, where he removed Strikers captain Colin Ingram.
Fleming coaches Chennai and said Lamichhane’s name was raised when they were scouting.
Now, he expects the Nepalese nipper to excel at the MCG, given its long square boundaries.
“With the pace he bowls and the trajectory he bowls, you would hope he gets it a little bit more square than down the ground — and that’s the style of bowler that tends to do well at the MCG,” Fleming said.
“(Signing Lamichhane) was a little bit of a punt, but I just like his attitude bowling, probably similar to Ricky Ponting when he picked him for Delhi.
“He’s not a finished product by any means, but his variations are very good and his deception is very good.
“They’re the two categories I look at when you’re looking for a spinner through the middle overs.”
Lamichhane’s eyes lit up as he sat in a vacant MCG and swivelled his head, pondering tomorrow night’s derby against the Renegades.
“I’m imagining all the fans sitting out here on the chairs and chanting for Melbourne Stars,” he said.
You have to love the way he speaks.
Interviewed after the 0-2 start to the season, Lamichhane said: “We’d love to give 100 per cent next game so we can give a reason to smile to everyone living in the Melbournes”.
Lamichhane already has his own cheer squad. Melbourne’s Nepalese community greeted him at Tullamarine when he arrived in Australia and there bays booked at several games.
About 600 Nepalese fans have purchased tickets to the Gabba for the Stars-Heat clash on February 8.
“People in Nepal are really, really humble and are really good people,” Lamichhane said.
“It’s really fortunate I’m born there and I’m playing for my country, Nepal, a beautiful country.
“I’m playing alongside all the cricketing stars and I’m very fortunate.
“I’m trying my best and all the Nepal players are trying their best to reach the top level of cricket so we can compete with good nations.”
Lamichhane has never been tempted to scale Mt Everest’s base camp in his home country.
“It’s too cold,” he said.
But at 18, Lamichhane is the closest Nepal has to reaching cricket’s summit.
SANDEEP LAMICHHANE in 2018
Games: 15
Wickets: 21
Strike-rate: 14.6
Economy rate: 7 (runs per over)
IN THE BBL
Games: 3
Wickets: 7 (No.1 in BBL)
Strike-rate: 10.3
Economy rate: 6.5 (No.8 in BBL)
*After Round 3
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