Bangladesh Cricket Board compensates Shakib Al Hasan and two more players for valuing national duty over IPL razzmatazz

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has compensated Shakib Al Hasan, Taskin Ahmed and Litton Das for choosing to play in the national team over featuring in the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. 

On Monday, July 3, BCB officials confirmed that a sum total of $65,000 was split in three ways between the senior cricketers for valuing national duty over the lucrative T20 league in India. Jalal Yunus, BCB cricket operations chief, in an interview, stated that the management had compensated the players partially for their decision. He further added that the BCB would not make it a regular practice and instead consider it case-by-case for the well-being of the players.

"This is just a small gesture on our part. They did not demand any money from us formally, but we felt they should be at least partially compensated, if not fully. We believe playing for the national team should be unconditional. But our board will consider it case-by-case, as players' well-being is also one of our priorities,” Jalal Yunus was quoted as saying by The Daily Star.

It is worth mentioning that, Shakib who was signed by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for IPL 2023, had to pull out of the competition as the Bangla Tigers were to square off against Ireland during the same time. 

Likewise, the BCB denied clearance to vice-captain Litton Das, who was also roped in by KKR ahead of the IPL season. However, Litton joined the KKR setup following the one-off Test against Ireland but headed back home after featuring in just one match.

On the other hand, pacer Taskin Ahmed was unsold at the auction, after he failed to attract any bids from the franchises. That said, the BCB cricket operations chief confirmed that Taskin received an offer from a franchise in the IPL as an injury replacement. Meanwhile, Mustafizur Rahman was the only player from Bangladesh who participated in the cash-rich league for Delhi Capitals but just appeared in two matches.