DHAKA, Oct 12, 2020 (BSS)—The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) will run a five-team T20 tournament at its own expense if they are unable to find a corporate body to buy the team, said BCB president Nazmul Hassan Papon.
The tournament is set to start in mid-November and matches are likely to be held in Dhaka and Sylhet. However, the country’s cricket apex body has not yet made a final decision on the tournament. The official announcement may come in a day or two.
“No matter whether it is a corporate tournament or at the expense of the BCB, we are organizing a tournament to bring the game back on the field. There will also be an experience on how to handle this situation (Covid-19),” the BCB boss said.
Announcing their plans, Papon added, “We will form five teams. All teams will be almost the same as far as the strength is concerned. If someone (Corporate body) takes the team, then they may take it or BCB will run it. We have no plan to make any money from this tournament. Our first goal is to bring back domestic cricket and then international, that’s what we’re working on. ”
The BCB wants to host the West Indies in January and therefore they are moving forward on slow down principle. Meantime the cricketers have returned to the field in a bio-secure environment amid Covid-19 pandemic. They are looking forward to playing International matches after playing competitive domestic cricket.
Besides, there are also plans for international cricket. The BCB wants to gain experience by hosting tournaments on a large scale before hosting the Caribbean in January. For this, matches are being planned in Dhaka and Sylhet.
“We can do the T20 tournament on a large scale,” the BCB president said, adding that two things will work for them by organizing this on a larger scale.
“One is how to introduce our domestic cricket, on a slightly larger scale. Two, is to bring back International cricket. We are working on how very soon Bangladesh can get on the field. ‘
However, the BCB chief is still undecided on the participation of foreign cricketers in the five-team T20. “We have not yet decided whether to bring in foreign players for the T20 tournament. It’s not that we can’t bring up any overseas cricketers.”
But instead of involving foreign cricketers, the BCB president favoured giving locals a chance.
“Since there are only five teams, the chances to include foreign cricketers are less. There will be 75 local cricketers in five teams and 55 will play. If we give a chance to two foreign cricketers, then 10 locals won’t have any chance to play. For this, we are thinking whether we’ll bring up foreign players. Our first wish is to give the country’s cricketers a chance to play.