Jishan Alam Joins Karnali Yaks for NPL Season 3

Jishan Alam has joined Karnali Yaks for the ongoing Nepal Premier League season, swapping his expected destination after his move to Biratnagar Kings fell through. The Bangladesh batter joins fellow countrymen Akbar Ali and Ariful Islam at the unbeaten league leaders.

The Karnali switch

Karnali Yaks have added Bangladesh batter Jishan Alam to their squad for the ongoing Nepal Premier League season, BDCricTime reported late on October 30, 2026. Jishan changed teams after his expected move to Biratnagar Kings fell through, and will now represent Karnali alongside two other Bangladesh cricketers, Akbar Ali and Ariful Islam.

The switch gives Karnali three Bangladeshi players, level with Pokhara Avengers, whose group is built around former Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan. BDCricTime counts ten Bangladeshis across the league this season. For Karnali, the timing is striking: the Yaks are the only unbeaten side in the early running, and they have added a batter in the middle of a winning run rather than during a slump.

The Biratnagar move that fell through

Jishan's original destination was never in doubt before the season. The Daily Sun reported on September 21 that the young batter was expected to represent Biratnagar Kings, and BDCricTime confirmed the following day that the Kings had signed the hard-hitting batter, describing the NPL as his first opportunity in an overseas franchise league.

Yet when the season began on October 26, Jishan was nowhere to be seen in Kings colours. He played no part in Biratnagar's opening defeat to Chitwan Rhinos, and by the time the Kings lost their second match, to Karnali themselves on October 29, the reason was being aired in public. Asked after that defeat about Jishan's claim that he could not contact the team, Biratnagar captain Sandeep Lamichhane gave a humorous reply, saying: “If I were the owner of the team, I might be able to answer this. How would I know about this!”

The exchange, reported by Ratopati from the post-match press conference, was brief and light in tone, but it confirmed what the team sheets had already suggested: whatever had been agreed before the season, the player and the franchise were no longer on the same page. Within a day, BDCricTime was reporting the resolution. No fuller formal explanation from either the player or Biratnagar has been published, and this article does not invent one. The full account of Lamichhane's frank assessment of that defeat shows a captain dealing with dropped catches and dew, not with a signing dispute.

The batter Karnali are getting

Jishan arrives with a reputation built on aggression. BDCricTime's September report put his T20 numbers at 571 runs in 27 matches at a strike rate of 138.91, built on regular domestic performances and age-group cricket for Bangladesh. He has played for Durbar Rajshahi in the Bangladesh Premier League and featured for Bangladesh's age-group, A and High Performance sides.

That profile fits the role BDCricTime sketches for him at Karnali. Ariful Islam has already been opening the innings for the Yaks, and the report notes that Bangladesh fans will now be eager to see whether Jishan gets the chance to partner him at the top of the order. Ariful's own start gives the idea weight: he hit 32 off just 12 balls against Biratnagar in Match 6, the game that confirmed Karnali's flying start and Biratnagar's winless one.

An opening pair of two young Bangladeshis would be a distinctive sight in a league dominated by established overseas stars, and a practical one too: a second aggressive opener would give the Yaks a faster start if an early wicket falls. Whether the team management sees it that way, and whether Jishan is ready to slot straight in, is something only the November 2 team sheet will show.

Karnali's search for cover

The switch also lands in the middle of a longer Karnali story. Pakistan captain Sahibzada Farhan, signed by the Yaks before the season, returned to Pakistan after being called up for national duty, and the franchise said at the time that it was preparing to bring in a replacement player while Farhan was away. Farhan was expected to return to Nepal after October 31, once Pakistan's commitments ended, meaning he would miss Karnali's first two matches of the tournament.

Karnali director Grihendra Ghimire set out the franchise's thinking when the Farhan situation broke, saying: “Our objective in bringing Pakistani players to the NPL is not just to watch them play, but also to invest in the development of Nepali cricket. Nepali cricket is currently in a developmental phase. Under these circumstances, we are disappointed by this last-minute demand for additional funds.” The quote was about the Pakistan board's late financial demand for player clearances, but it also captured why Karnali have been planning around absences rather than assuming arrivals.

To be precise about what is known and what is not: BDCricTime's report does not describe Jishan as Farhan's formal replacement, and this article does not claim that he is. What can be said is that Karnali moved for a batter while their marquee Pakistan signing was out of the country, and that the Yaks have kept winning regardless. They beat Janakpur Bolts by 19 runs in Match 3, then beat Biratnagar by four wickets in Match 6, when captain Sompal Kami scored an unbeaten 62 and took four wickets.

What the switch means

Mid-season team switches are rare in franchise cricket, and this one says something about both clubs. For Biratnagar, losing a signed overseas batter before he plays a game is a quiet embarrassment, and it comes at the worst moment: the Kings are winless after two matches, their fielding and bowling have been publicly criticised by their own captain, and they face Sudurpaschim Royals on Saturday, October 31, still hunting a first win. Depth was supposed to be their strength; instead, one of their overseas names is now strengthening the team that beat them.

For Karnali, the addition creates a selection question as much as an opportunity. Only four overseas players can feature in a playing XI, and the Yaks already had David Miller, Hussain Talat and Mark Watt alongside Akbar and Ariful before Jishan arrived. Jishan will have to earn his place rather than walk into it, and the first chance to do so comes against Kathmandu Gorkhas on Monday, November 2, at 12:30 PM Nepal time at Kirtipur, a fixture listed on the NPL Season 3 schedule.

The wider picture is a league in which Bangladeshi players are no longer a footnote. Ten Bangladeshis are involved this season, Karnali and Pokhara hold three each, and a player who could not get through to one franchise has found a home at another within days. If Jishan opens alongside Ariful, Karnali will have turned a communication breakdown at a rival into one of the tournament's most interesting experiments. If he waits for his chance, the Yaks still have a young, aggressive batter in reserve for the long run to the playoffs, and a points table lead to protect while they work out where he fits.