The forthcoming Dhaka Premier League that was delayed due to the non-participation of the national cricketers is set to lose some of its attraction as three major national stars in Sakib al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal and Nasir Hossain will be unavailable.
All-rounder Sakib al Hasan is expected to join English county side Leicestershire for the Friends Life Twenty20 tournament and in the process also complete his over-due honeymoon as well as visiting his father-in-law’s residence in the United States.
The tournament in England gets underway from June 26 that is apparently coinciding with the country’s prestigious limited overs competition which is expected to begin from next month after initiatives were taken by the Bangladesh Cricket Board recently.
Some clubs, in fear of being less-competitive, were reluctant to play the league earlier as they did not want to participate without the availability of the national players.
While Sakib will be busy with his honeymoon, his close friend Tamim will be making last-minute preparations for his wedding dated to be taking place in mid-June.
‘We cannot ask Sakib to stay back as it is not a national commitment,’ Jalal Yunus, chairman of the Cricket Club of Dhaka Metropolis told New Age on Wednesday.
‘Tamim might also miss a major part of the league because of his wedding,’ said Jalal.
‘Nasir is expected to undergo an operation and there is no chance for him to play as well,’ he added.
‘We have to play with the available options,’ said Jalal.
BCB physician Debashish Chowdhury added that apart from Nasir Hossain, pace bowlers Shahadat Hossain and Abul Hossain have very little chance of making it as they are going through rehabilitation.
Nazmul Hossain, who returned from Sri Lanka in the middle of the tour in March, is expected to go to India soon for his knee operation.
‘Nasir is expected to be operated on May 21 and will need at least four to five months to return back to competitive action,’ said Debashish.
‘After we examine the national players, we can say exactly how many of them will not be available,’ he added.
-With New Age input
