B'desh upbeat despite exodus as NZ loom

Bangladesh are confident the exodus of players to the unofficial Indian Cricket League (ICL) would not cripple the national team in next month's home series against New Zealand, a cricket official said on Thursday. Former Bangladesh captain Habibul Bashar and 12 other leading players signed for the Twenty20 league on Tuesday. The board has said it would slap 10-year bans on those playing in unofficial tournaments. "No doubt it is a setback for us," Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) media chief Ahmed Sazzadul Alam told Reuters. "But we are confident that we have enough players in the pipeline to fill the void. Bangladesh, who play three one-dayers and two tests against New Zealand, have only won one of their previous 53 tests (47 defeats) since making their debut in 2000. "The players waiting in the pipeline are equally talented," Alam said. "The only thing we will be missing is the experience of a few players." Among those who have signed up for the ICL, only Alok Kapali, Farhad Reza and Dhiman Ghosh were in the Bangladesh squad which played three one-dayers against Australia this month. Batsmen Shariar Nafees and Aftab Ahmed played in the previous test series, at home against South Africa in February. At least seven contracted players including Bashar, Nafees and Aftab have put in requests for retirement with BCB without giving any reason. Alam said many key players had not joined ICL. "Most of the players like Mohammad Ashraful, Mashrafe Mortaza, Sakib Al Hassan, Tamim Iqbal, Abdur Razzak and Shahadat Hossain who are regulars in the national team, are still with us. "Our bowling department is not at all affected with their departure." New Zealand arrive in Bangladesh on Sept.30 and play two ODIs in Dhaka on Oct. 9 and 11 with the final game in Chittagong on Oct.14. The tests will be played in Chittagong and Dhaka from Oct.17 and 25 respectively. The BCB officials are also hopeful its depleted team and the Australian test tour of India happening around the same period would not affect the interest in the Bangladesh series and its income.

source: www.circbuzz.com

Bangladesh T20 rebels banned for 10 years

Bangladesh cricket chiefs said on Wednesday that 13 players who opted to compete in the unauthorised Indian Twenty20 league will be banned for 10 years. The Indian Cricket League (ICL) unveiled late Tuesday its new Dhaka Warriors team in New Delhi, which comprises 11 Bangladesh internationals reportedly earning 200,000 dollars each over a three-year period. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) held an emergency meeting Wednesday and decided to ban the players for joining the unapproved league for 10 years, BCB spokesman Rabeed Imam said. "We don't have full reports of who have joined the ICL. But today, the board has decided that whoever has joined the unapproved league would be automatically banned for 10 years," he said. The board was also considering legal action against the 13 for breaching International Cricket Council rules, he added. At least seven of the 13 players informed the BCB they were retiring from Bangladesh cricket, citing personal reasons. The 13 players announced for the Dhaka Warriors include former captain Habibul Bashar and senior team-mates Shahriar Nafis, Dhiman Ghosh, Mohammad Rafique and Alok Kapali. The others are Aftab Ahmed, Farhad Reza, Manjural Islam, Mabud Chowdhury, Mahbubul Karim, Mohammad Sharif, Mosharraf Hossain and Tapash Baisya. Players aligned with the ICL -- bankrolled by India's largest listed media company Zee Telefilms -- are banned from playing official domestic and international cricket. The meeting was held a day after the board announced it would not accept the players' retirements. Earlier Wednesday, Bangladesh's Australia-born coach Jamie Siddons, who joined the cricket minnows a year ago, denied the sport was in crisis. "We can't afford to lose that many players on a regular basis. We'll replace these guys with young players but my biggest concern is that the ICL will come knocking again next year," Siddons told AFP via telephone from Australia. Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful told the leading Bengali language newspaper 'Prothom Alo', in an interview published Tuesday that he was offered a 700,000-dollar contract to play in the ICL, which he declined.

source: www.cricbuzz.com