Bangladesh Cricket Board failed to resolve the ongoing crisis making it uncertain when the Dhaka Premier League will resume after it was stopped mid-way through the league.
At the 35th meeting of its board of directors on Sunday the main agenda was the DPL as the Cricket Committee Dhaka Metropolis put the ball in the BCB court to make a decision after the league came to an abrupt halt on March 28 after Abahani had refused to play halfway through the game on the plea that Victoria’s Pakistani cricketer Mohammad Yousuf didn’t have the clearance from Mohammedan SC where he played last year.
Victoria, however, produced a letter on the Mohammedan pad that stated Yousuf had got the clearance on January15, 2011.
The match referee awarded Victoria two points after Abahani refused to play.
Mohammedan also sent a letter to the CCDM claiming that the clearance produced by Victoria was fake.
At this point the CCDM decided that the matter should be solved by the BCB directors at their meeting.
The Board formed of a four-member committee comprising Dewan Shafiul Arefin, Gazi Ashraf Hossain, Mahbub Anam and Sirajuddin Mohammad Alamgir who will sit with the three clubs to find out a solution.
‘It’s a big matter and all the three parties need to sit together, so we have decided to form a body with four directors and they will sit with them tomorrow (today) and hopefully make a decision,’ AHM Mustafa Kamal, president of the BCB, told reporters.
‘I have already spoken to Abahani, Mohammedan and Victoria and we just couldn’t make time to sit with them,’ said Kamal.
‘I am leaving the country tomorrow (today) but I hope they [committee members] will be able to find a solution,’ said Kamal.
Kamal said the committee members will meet with the clubs today to decide on whether Mohammad Yousuf’s clearance was valid or not.
‘CCDM is saying he had got the clearance while others are saying he didn’t. All these things will be resolved when all the three clubs sit together with the committee,’ said Kamal.
Meanwhile, the BCB president asked Iqbal Yusuf, the member secretary of the CCDM, to resign.
‘You decide when you want to resign,’ an angry Kamal told Iqbal. The board thanked the players, officials, franchises, sponsors and organisers of the first edition of the BPL T20 and the Asia Cup 2012 for successful completion of the events.
The meeting approved the national players’ contracts for 2012. Fifteen cricketers were awarded BCB contract for one year from January 1 to December 31. There has been an increase of 10 per cent in player salaries for all grades.
The meeting also approved the FTP agreement between the BCB and all full members of the ICC and the Domestic Anti-Corruption Code and the Domestic Anti-Doping Rules per the ICC format. The BCB will lay synthetic pitched in 17 districts under seven divisions targeting the schools, age group teams and competitions by the end of the year.
The BCB will approach the BKSP authority for lease of the Khulna BKSP for establishing a modern cricket academy. Two grounds of the BKSP at Savar will be upgraded to international standard. The tender for this purpose will be floated shortly.
The Board allocated Tk 90 lakh for the development of the area outside Fatullah stadium. The development work will consist of preparing a playing field and cricket training facilities.
The meeting was adjourned until April 6.
-With New Age input
