Nepal national cricket team head coach Dav Whatmore has resigned.

The former World Cup winning coach on Friday sent an email to the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) writing that he would resign from his post citing the situation in Nepal.

"He said through an email that he would resign owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, and personal and family reasons," said CAN president Chautra Bahadur Chand.

"It was an unexpected incident. We are in an important stage as we are set to play the ICC World Cup Cricket League 2 against Oman and the US. We wish the coach hadn’t resigned ahead of the Oman tour," said CAN secretary Ashok Nath Pyarkurel. "It would be good had it not come at this moment because the experienced captain and player Paras Khadka resigned recently."

The 67-year-old Sri Lanka-born Australian national, who coached Sri Lanka to a World Cup win in 1996, was appointed in January this year for a year-long term.

He guided Nepal to the trophy in the Tri-Nation Series Twenty20 cricket tournament in April involving Nepal, the Netherlands and Malaysia.

The Nepali national team is currently in Oman to play ICC World Cup Cricket League 2 against Oman and the US, set to take place from September 13 to 20. Before that, they will play a two-match One-Day International (ODI) series against Papua New Guinea on September 5 and 8.

Late on Friday evening, the cricket governing body said: "He [Whatmore] has resigned with immediate effect after the Oman tour citing his personal reasons."

"It was an unexpected event for us. But we will think of his replacement as we don't have any other choice at the moment. As per the contract, Whatmore would have given us notice about his resignation a month prior and he did that," said Pyakurel.

Nepal currently sit sixth in the League 2 table featuring seven teams—Oman, the USA, Scotland, Namibia, the UAE and Papua New Guinea. The event is the gateway to the World Cup as three teams finishing on top will secure berths in the World Cup Qualifiers. The bottom four will compete in the World Cup Qualifiers playoff set to take place in Zimbabwe in June and July of 2023.

Each team will play 36 ODIs when the event concludes in February 2023.

Nepal have so far played four matches in the three-year League 2 cycle and have registered two wins and as many defeats. Oman lead the standings winning eight of the 10 matches played. The US are second in the standings with six wins out of 12 matches played and PNG are at the bottom having lost all eight matches played so far.