The Dhaka Premier League’s troubles are seemingly never ending. With the Bangladesh Cricket Board declaring fresh dates for the players’ draft and the tournament to begin, it was thought that the tournament would finally see the light of day.
But with 12 clubs deciding not to participate in the tournament before September while also rejecting the dates given by the Board the tournament finds itself in crisis for the umpteenth time.
The reason shown by the 12-clubs is that they don’t want to participate and invest money in a tournament which has the chances of being washed out by the monsoon and that time will help them develop infrastructure.
But it was learnt from one of the premier club officials that the focal point of conflict between the Board and the premier league clubs is the ‘financial aid’ promised by the board.
“There will be no premier league if the board doesn’t pay the financial aid as promised,” the official said requesting anonymity.
The BCB president Nazmul Hasan in a meeting with club officials in June promised the clubs financial aid but later went back on his word.
The premier league clubs were never formally informed of the Board’s decision which was another reason for their displeasure.
“He (Nazmul) was the one who said that the board will pay before he left for London to attend the ICC AGM,” said premier league side, Cricket Coaching School official, Iqbal Yousuf Niku to Dhaka Tribune Monday.
Niku further complained that Nazmul’s tone dramatically changed upon his return from England.
“But once he was back, he told the media that the Board will not pay any aid. We were never informed of it officially, it was the media from where we got to know about it,” said Niku.
The tournament this season was supposed to begin in March. But disputes between the Board and the clubs on different issues at times delayed the tournament much to the detriment of many cricketers whose incomes depend entirely on such competitions.
Interestingly the official who previously said that the clubs will participate only if paid revealed more interesting facts.
Along with the premier league, Bangladesh cricket also awaits the Board election. If the premier league is suffering today, it is because of the ongoing politics between the current BCB ad-hoc committee and those who are looking forward to contest the elections.
“An experienced one can always understand the issues out of the frame. The current BCB president (Nazmul) and his team are contenders for the upcoming election while there are many who are involved with the clubs who are looking forward to fight in the polls. So it’s obvious that the current Board will have the least possible cooperation,” said the club official.
The BCB media wing chairman Jalal Younus, also the chairman of the Cricket Committee of Dhaka Metropolis was sought out to comment on the issue, but calls to him were left unanswered.