Bought back
Gupta is a Nepal left-arm fast-medium bowler who was released by the franchise in June 2026 — and then bought back at the July auction for NPR 5 lakh. A team does not spend that money on a bowler it has just released unless it knows something about him, and the Lions do: the 21-year-old has Nepal Under-19 pedigree and produced a December 2025 T20 spell of three for 21 at an economy of 5.25.
That spell is the whole of his case in one line — three wickets, barely five runs an over, from a left-armer. Left-arm pace is the scarcest skill in the squad: of the fast bowlers the Lions have used this season, only Ruben Trumpelmann bowls left-arm, and he is an overseas signing. Gupta is the domestic left-arm option, the bowler who gives the captain a different angle without changing the balance of the side.
Why he hasn’t played yet
Gupta’s name does not appear in any of the 21 published scorecards of NPL Season 3 so far. He has not played a game for the Lions this season, and the reason is the pace queue ahead of him.
Trumpelmann and Kishore Mahato share the new ball — six wickets and four wickets between them — and the Lions have won three of their five games with that pair. A third seamer’s chance comes when a pitch offers swing, when a left-arm match-up suits the opposition, or when the captain rests a fast bowler before the playoffs. Gupta is the third seamer and the left-arm understudy, and the two league games left — Karnali on Thursday, Biratnagar on Saturday — are where a third seamer usually gets his game, especially if the playoff place is already secured by then.
The pace queue around him
The pace attack Gupta is waiting to join has been the new-ball engine of the title defence. Trumpelmann has six wickets in three matches and Mahato has four in three, and the pair have bowled the first overs of every game the Lions have played. Grant Stewart, the other seamer in the squad, has played once.
The Lions are third in the NPL Points Table with seven points from five games and the league’s best net run rate at +1.501, defending the title they won in 2025. Every result is on the NPL Results page. What the attack has not yet had is a domestic left-armer — and that is the gap Gupta fills. The champions spent NPR 5 lakh to bring him back for a reason, and the reason is the playoffs: knockout games are won by attacks with a different angle, and a 21-year-old left-armer with a three for 21 behind him is the different angle the Lions have kept in reserve.
What’s next
Two league games left in the Nepal Premier League, then the playoffs. The full list of every NPL fixture is on the NPL Schedule.
- Match 23 — Karnali Yaks vs Lumbini Lions: Thursday 12 November 2026, 4:30 PM NST (3:45 PM PKT, 10:45 AM UTC), TU International Cricket Ground, Kirtipur.
- Match 26 — Biratnagar Kings vs Lumbini Lions: Saturday 14 November 2026, 4:30 PM NST (3:45 PM PKT, 10:45 AM UTC), TU International Cricket Ground, Kirtipur.
- Playoffs: Qualifier 1 on Tuesday 17 November, the Eliminator on Wednesday 18 November, Qualifier 2 on Thursday 19 November, and the final on Saturday 21 November — every playoff starts at 4:30 PM NST.
Follow every NPL result as it happens on SialTV, with the points table updated after every match day.
Frequently asked questions
Has Durgesh Gupta played in NPL 2026?
Not yet. His name does not appear in any of the 21 published scorecards of the season so far. He is in the Lumbini Lions squad as the third seamer and left-arm cover.
Why did Lumbini Lions buy Durgesh Gupta back?
He was released in June 2026 and bought back at the July auction for NPR 5 lakh. The 21-year-old left-arm fast-medium bowler has Nepal Under-19 pedigree and took 3 for 21 at 5.25 an over in a December 2025 T20 game.
When is Lumbini Lions’ next match?
Match 23 against Karnali Yaks on Thursday 12 November 2026, starting at 4:30 PM NST at the TU Ground in Kirtipur. Their last league game is against Biratnagar Kings on Saturday 14 November.