Sandeep Lamichhane, the Nepal leg-spinner, has picked England’s Tom Banton as the toughest batsman he has bowled to thus far. The youngster made the revelations during an Instagram Live session with the Delhi Capitals (DC) for whom he plays in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Banton came to the limelight in the 2019 edition of the T20 Blast, representing Somerset.

He along with Pakistan’s Babar Azam tormented a number of oppositions. Thereafter, he got a national call-up in the tour of New Zealand. Moreover, the 21-year-old was picked to play for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the 2020 Indian Premier League (IPL). KKR, captained by Dinesh Karthik roped him in at his base price of INR 1 crore.

Lamichhane reckons that Banton can smash the pacers and spinners with equal ferocity. “I think Tom Banton. He is a new sensation with so many cricketing shots in his book… He smashes not only the spinners but also the fast bowlers,” Lamichhane was quoted as saying during the interaction.

Sandeep Lamichhane facing Banton’s wrath

The duo of Sandeep and Banton has already come face to face in the Big Bash League (BBL). Even as the former has already played a couple of seasons in the T20 tournament, the England batsman made his debut last time around. They locked horns in the match between Sandeep’s Melbourne Stars and Banton’s Brisbane Heat.

In that game, Sandeep bore the brunt of Banton’s venom. In one of the overs, Sandeep gave away 19 runs with Banton hitting him for two fours and a six off consecutive deliveries. It wasn’t much of a surprise when the Nepal tweaker went for Banton as a tough prospect to deal with. Banton also has the second fastest half-century in the history of the BBL.

🔹 5⃣6⃣ runs off 19 balls 🤯
🔹 5⃣ sixes in 1 over 💥
🔹 Second-fastest fifty in @BBL history 👏
🔹 Man of the Match 😎

That's just @TBanton18 being Tom Banton! 🔥#KorboLorboJeetbo @HeatBBL pic.twitter.com/5bo7GFmhfl

— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) January 6, 2020

They also played against each other in the 2019 edition of the T10 League at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. If the IPL doesn’t get cancelled, Lamichhane may again get a chance to bowl at Banton. Lamichhane has come up the ranks as well, playing in most franchise T20 leagues around the world. In the previous IPL, he picked up nine wickets from six matches.