Nepal to take on US in Division 4 opener

KATHMANDU, July 12: Nepal will take on the US in the opening match of the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 4 being held in Italy from August 14 to 22. This is the third consecutive match between the two sides in ICC tournaments.



Nepal lost to the US in the league round of Division 5 held in Nepal on February 20-29 and defeated the US in the final of the tournament. Nepal and the US have qualified for Division 4 as the Division 5 winners and runners-up. [break]



International Cricket Council (ICC) published the tie-sheet for the Division 4 tournament on Monday, setting up the Nepal-US clash on August 14.



Nepal will play against hosts Italy on August 15 and take on Tanzania on August 17. Nepal will face Argentina on August 18 and the Cayman Islands on August 20.



The final of the tournament is scheduled for August 21.



All opponents, except the US and Italy, are new to Nepal. Nepal and the US have met on four previous occasions, when Nepal won twice and lost once while one match was washed out. On the other hand, Nepal have come out victorious in their two previous meetings with Italy.



The winners and the runners-up of the tournament will be promoted to Division 3, which will be held in Hong Kong in January 2011.



The ultimate goal for the six teams is to reach the ICC World Cup Qualifiers in 2013 and compete for a place in the 2015 ICC World Cup, to be held in Australia and New Zealand.



The bottom two teams will be relegated to Division 5 ready for the next cycle, which will begin after the 2015 World Cup.



The Italian province of Bologna will host the Division 4 tournament at the Pianora, Medicini and Bologna grounds.

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