{"id":234762,"date":"2025-10-23T10:07:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-23T10:07:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/234762\/"},"modified":"2025-10-23T10:07:13","modified_gmt":"2025-10-23T10:07:13","slug":"stuart-law-there-will-be-people-in-nepal-thinking-we-can-go-and-win-the-world-cup-its-a-free-hit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/234762\/","title":{"rendered":"Stuart Law: \u2018There will be people in Nepal thinking we can go and win the World Cup – it’s a free hit’"},"content":{"rendered":"

In seven months at the helm of one of world cricket\u2019s rising forces, Stuart Law has got pretty much everything right. Other than two things.<\/p>\n

First, there is his plan to rid Nepal of the nickname \u201cThe Cardiac Kids\u201d. He is well intentioned, and there has been signs they might be working out how to dispassionately put teams away when they have them at their mercy.<\/p>\n

Evidence: when they beat West Indies by 90 runs<\/a> in Sharjah last month, to clinch their first bilateral series win against a Test-playing nation. It does not come much more ruthless than that.<\/p>\n

But then they reverted to type at the T20 World Cup Qualifier which followed in Muscat, taking last-over thrillers against the UAE<\/a> and Qatar to help ease their path to India and Sri Lanka. Which was, of course, way more fun than winning them the other way.<\/p>\n

Secondly, there is his attempt to dampen expectations. He cautioned against people expecting them to beat the West Indies<\/a> ahead of that series, pointing out it was more about prep for the qualifier which followed.<\/p>\n

But they went and dominated the first two games of that, taking the series in rapid time.<\/p>\n

So now when he says people should be wary about expecting too much from Nepal at the T20 World Cup, people might question: why? <\/p>\n

It is difficult not to get excited when Nepal have won 10 games out of 12 in the T20 international format. That included a three-match series against the West Indies<\/a>, with one of the two losses coming in the dead rubber third match. It also includes wins against top associate sides like Scotland, Netherlands, the UAE and Oman.<\/p>\n

During that streak, they have made a strong case for them delivering on one of Law\u2019s targets: to be regarded as the best fielding side in the world.<\/p>\n

That was shown chiefly by Dipendra Singh Airee\u2019s extraordinary, record-demolishing run of direct hits in five successive matches.<\/p>\n

It was also evidenced by Gulshan Jha\u2019s magnificent catches to turn the series against the West Indies.<\/p>\n

Still, though, Law is still pleading for some perspective. \u201cI think we\u2019ve got to have realistic expectations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019ll be people in Nepal thinking, \u2018Right, we can go on and win the World Cup.\u2019 Now, that\u2019s everyone\u2019s dream, of course. But it may be a bridge too far right now to compete and beat teams like India and Australia<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe go there [to the T20 World Cup in February], and it\u2019s a free hit. Every team we play, they\u2019re going to be under more pressure to beat us and they\u2019re going to be wary of us.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery game we go into, we\u2019ll be the underdog. I love that term. It just means there should be no pressure. We just go and play a game of cricket, play the way we want to play and don\u2019t get sucked into playing the opposition\u2019s way.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd if we play well enough on the day, you never know. T20 cricket in particular, is a very funny game. You can win or lose in one or two overs.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, if we\u2019re good enough for long enough, there\u2019s every chance we could cause an upset.\u201d<\/p>\n

During their sequence of wins, there were two moments which provided a clue to the reasons behind Nepal\u2019s excellence in the field.<\/p>\n

Each was less spectacular than Airee\u2019s run outs, or Jha\u2019s catches, and have no acknowledgement in any scorebook.<\/p>\n

In the thrashing of the West Indies in Sharjah, Jha took two brilliant catches, but also tried for a third. It was a lost cause which he would not accept. He dived forward, and could have ended up with a face-full of cricket ball, and a few missing teeth. He did not take the catch, but it spoke of an unyielding commitment. <\/p>\n

Almost the identical thing happened in the final game of the qualifier, when qualification, and even victory against Samoa, was as good as sealed. Sundeep Jora tried to make something of a lost cause, like Jha had done against the West Indies. And he was only a fielding substitute at the time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m OK if people make mistakes by having a go,\u201d Law said. \u201cIt\u2019s when they sit back and wait for it and then they make a mistake that\u2019s when you think, \u2018OK, we\u2019ve got problems there.\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cI want them to be aggressive in everything they do, whether they\u2019re batting, bowling, or fielding. But there\u2019s also a time you\u2019ve got to use your smarts as well and make intelligent decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Which brings Law to his perennial aim: calming down the Cardiac Kids. Last-ball finishes, like the one against the UAE in Muscat, will always happen. But so long as the players are clear-minded and cool under pressure, he will be satisfied.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat has really changed for me in the group is how calm we are now in the dressing room,\u201d Law said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBefore when we were going well, they were really up and boisterous. And then we were losing wickets or getting hit, we were very, very quiet, but now we\u2019re very even.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd the more even you are, the calmer you are, the better decisions you make.\u201d<\/p>\n

SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)<\/p>\n

%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EProcessor%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Apple%20M3%2C%208-core%20CPU%2C%20up%20to%2010-core%20CPU%2C%2016-core%20Neural%20Engine%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDisplay%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2013.6-inch%20Liquid%20Retina%2C%202560%20x%201664%2C%20224ppi%2C%20500%20nits%2C%20True%20Tone%2C%20wide%20colour%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMemory%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%208%2F16%2F24GB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStorage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20256%2F512GB%20%2F%201%2F2TB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EI%2FO%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Thunderbolt%203%2FUSB-4%20(2)%2C%203.5mm%20audio%2C%20Touch%20ID%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EConnectivity%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Wi-Fi%206E%2C%20Bluetooth%205.3%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2052.6Wh%20lithium-polymer%2C%20up%20to%2018%20hours%2C%20MagSafe%20charging%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECamera%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201080p%20FaceTime%20HD%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EVideo%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Support%20for%20Apple%20ProRes%2C%20HDR%20with%20Dolby%20Vision%2C%20HDR10%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAudio%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204-speaker%20system%2C%20wide%20stereo%2C%20support%20for%20Dolby%20Atmos%2C%20Spatial%20Audio%20and%20dynamic%20head%20tracking%20(with%20AirPods)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EColours%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Midnight%2C%20silver%2C%20space%20grey%2C%20starlight%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIn%20the%20box%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20MacBook%20Air%2C%2030W%2F35W%20dual-port%2F70w%20power%20adapter%2C%20USB-C-to-MagSafe%20cable%2C%202%20Apple%20stickers%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh4%2C599%3C%2Fp%3E%0A<\/p>\n

GIANT REVIEW<\/p>\n

Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan<\/p>\n

Director: Athale<\/p>\n

Rating: 4\/5<\/p>\n

TICKETS<\/p>\n

For tickets for the two-day\u00a0Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) event, entitled Dubai Invasion 2019, on September 27 and 28 go to www.meraticket.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Company Profile<\/p>\n

Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million <\/p>\n

Silent Hill f <\/p>\n

Publisher: Konami<\/p>\n

Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X\/S, PC<\/p>\n

Rating: 4.5\/5<\/p>\n

Concrete and Gold
Foo Fighters
RCA records<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In seven months at the helm of one of world cricket\u2019s rising forces, Stuart Law has got pretty…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":234763,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[564],"tags":[64,63,740,37179,85,156,155],"class_list":["post-234762","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cricket","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-cricket","tag-sport-team","tag-sports","tag-standard","tag-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234762","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=234762"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234762\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/234763"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=234762"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=234762"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=234762"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}