BCB chief Faruque Ahmed believes Shakib can still play for Bangladesh

New Delhi(The Uttam Hindu): Faruque Ahmed, president of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), said he still believes Shakib al Hasan can play for the senior men’s team, provided he gets clearance from legal authorities. Shakib, who retired from Tests and T20Is this year, had hoped to play his final Test on home soil. But security concerns meant he didn’t get to do that and couldn’t even get to play the ODI series against Afghanistan.

It has also meant that Shakib, who was elected as MP from the ousted Awami League government, is not named in Bangladesh’s ODI squad for tour of West Indies. "As for Shakib Al Hasan, I cannot provide a definitive answer. I want him to play, but his absence is not related to the cricket board. "The reasons preventing his participation involve law enforcement and the court. It's not easy for me to address this. If the issue is resolved, I still believe Shakib has the ability to play for the national team." "However, playing in franchise leagues abroad and playing for the national team are not the same. The national team requires a certain combination, and Shakib doesn't seem to be in the mental state to contribute at that level right now. We've left this decision to him," Ahmed was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz. He said there are thoughts to launch women’s version of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), but also pointed out making the upcoming edition of the men’s tournament a success is a priority too.

"The idea of a Women's BPL is fantastic. I believe we have given proper importance to women's cricket and will try to increase facilities for them. We need to evaluate our capacity for hosting the Women's BPL. Our effort will be there, and we'll see what happens. "Simultaneously, we aim to strengthen the Men's BPL further. Although this is the first BPL during my tenure on the board, it's also the last of this cycle. If I remain in the next term, or whoever does, I hope the major franchises will stay for the long term. Having two or three new franchises every year is not ideal. "Our first challenge was to ensure the BPL could take place with seven teams despite several obstacles, including the economic situation and teams withdrawing. Now, it's time for better screening and adjustments," he concluded.