After a day of high drama, Bangladesh’s cricketers have finally reached an agreement with the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), clearing the way for the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) to resume from Friday.
Following talks with representatives of the Cricketers’ Welfare Association of Bangladesh (CWAB) at the BCB headquarters in Navana Tower, Gulshan, late on Thursday night, BPL Governing Council member secretary Ifthekhar Rahman Mithu confirmed at a press conference that the tournament would return to action from Friday.
The crisis began after controversial remarks by BCB director M Nazmul Islam, prompting cricketers to boycott Thursday’s two BPL matches while demanding his resignation. Although Nazmul was later removed from his role as head of the BCB’s finance committee, the deadlock initially remained unresolved.
As events unfolded throughout the day, BCB sources indicated around 6:30 pm that the BPL could be postponed indefinitely. However, those fears were eventually allayed following late-night discussions between the board and player representatives.
Explaining the decision to return to the field, CWAB president Mohammad Mithun said at the press conference:
“We are not above cricket. We all want what is best for the game. We want to play. Not playing cricket is never desirable. In the interest of cricket, we are returning to the field after a productive discussion with everyone at the board.”
Providing details of the revised schedule, Mithu said the two abandoned matches on 15 January had forced a reshuffle of fixtures.
“We have all agreed that cricket must resume,” he said. “There was a gap before the qualifiers — a rest day on the 18th. We are now shifting the schedule gradually up to the 18th.”
The disruption had also caused frustration among supporters. On the opening day of the Dhaka phase, many fans were unable to enter the stands, and following the boycott, some angry spectators vandalised areas outside the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur.
In that context, Mithu urged journalists to help inform supporters about the revised timetable.
“Please let the fans know that today’s match will be played tomorrow, tomorrow’s match the day after, and the following day’s match on the 18th,” he said. “I am very happy that we have been able to reach a conclusion.”
With the impasse resolved, the BPL is now set to continue as scheduled, restoring momentum to the tournament after a turbulent 24 hours.
