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'We played together in under 15 for Mumbai and now he is the captain of Nepal under 19 team and we others are 24-25 respectively.'
Former Mumbai Ranji Trophy player Kaustub Pawar on Monday alleged that Nepal's captain in the ongoing ICC Under-19 World Cup -- Raju Rijal -- is overaged.
Pawar posted a picture of Rijal on his Facebook and claimed he had played with him in Mumbai’s Under-15 level.
Pawar, 25, who has played 127 first class matches also claimed that Rijal used to play in Mumbai by the name of Raju Sharma.
“We played together in under 15 for Mumbai and now he is the captain of Nepal under 19 team and we others are 24-25 age respectively. In Mumbai Raju Sharma, in Nepal Raju Rijal. #SaveCricket #Shame, #ICCUnder19WorldCupBangladesh2016,” Pawar posted on his Facebook page.
Rijal, however, refused to comment on the allegations.
”I don’t have any idea about this. I am not on social media. So I cannot comment on this," Rijal was quoted as saying by Cricwizz.com.
Kaustubh’s post hit the social media just before Nepal's third match in the tournament against India which they lost by seven wickets.
However, Nepal along with India qualified for the quarter-finals of the tournament from Group D.
According to Rijal’s official records on a few cricket websites, he was born on September 26, 1996 at Dhangadi in Nepal.
It remains to be seen if it's a case of mixed identities or if Pawar has opened a can of worms, which could severely impact the ongoing Junior World Cup.