Cricket

Cricket is the second most popular sport in Nepal, catching up with football as Nepal's most popular sport thanks largely to the spread of television to the rural communities.Nepal's playing season runs from September to November and starts again in March before finishing in May. A National Academy is in the works, partly funded by the Asian Cricket Council, to provide indoor practice in the face of Nepal's challenging weather.In December 2012 there were 429 senior cricket clubs and 227 junior cricket clubs in Nepal.

Cricket was introduced to Nepal by the ruling Rana dynasty when they returned from studies in England and India in the 1920s, though the game was kept very much for themselves and other members of the elite. The Cricket Association of Nepal was formed in 1946 to promote cricket amongst the aristocracy.When King Tribhuvan overthrew the Rana family in 1951, cricket began to spread to the rest of the population. In 1961, in an effort to promote cricket in the whole of Nepal, the Cricket Association of Nepal became part of the National Sports Council. Nevertheless, the game tended to be limited to Kathmandu until the 1980s.