Bangladesh Cricket Board has planned to hold the third edition of the controversial Bangladesh Premier League Twenty20 this November. Following payment irregularities by the old franchise owners, the BCB last month floated tenders seeking new franchise owners for the seven teams. According to the BCB’s Expression of Interest application, the interested parties have been requested to submit their respective tenders within this Monday.
The majority believes the initiative taken by the BCB is a right one; the inconsistent franchise owners are being treated in accordance with the rules and regulations. But what is perhaps alarming to many is that cricket’s regulatory body in the country is trying to solve the issues from the past editions of the tournament.
Although more than two years have elapsed since the second edition, the seven franchises still owe jaw-dropping amounts of money. It is not only the board who was supposed to be paid in full by the franchises, but also the cricketers, both local and international. And ahead of the third season of the BPL, the BCB has taken steps to minimise such happenings.
The board came in as the guarantor for the second season, only to find themselves in trouble. The BCB had expected to generate a lot of revenue from BPL 2 but instead incurred huge losses. The organising company, Game On Sports, signed an agreement with the BCB, amounting Tk 19 crores, but ended up paying only Tk 6 crores. Game On had showed that they had failed to generate profit due to the BCB’s faults.
The absence of the Pakistan cricketers from BPL 2 was cited as one of the reasons behind the huge losses. Although the BCB is still in discussions with Game On in order to realise the outstanding money, chances are slim, according to officials.
Both the Federation of the International Cricketers’ Association and the Cricketers’ Welfare Association of Bangladesh have been trying to realise the payment. Pressure has been created by the two organisations but the cricketers are yet to receive their full wages.
The board is currently busy arbitrating with the previous BPL team owners. Efforts are being made to realise the dues but many are anticipating that the issue might never be solved.
In order to make it convenient for the new franchise owners, the BCB has decided to put a cap on their expenditure and revise the players’ recruitment process. It was learned that the new franchise owners cannot exceed the budget of Tk 4.4 crore in BPL 3.
According to the new proposed pay-scale of the BPL, a local player can earn a highest payment of Tk 30 lakh. As far as the foreign players are concerned, a cricketer can pocket as much as $70,000 although the BCB is in favour of keeping it limited to $50,000.
