Bangladesh's head coach urges his players to stay away from social media

Bangladesh head coach Phil Simmons has urged his players to stay away from social media following an incident at Dhaka airport, where some national team cricketers were abused by fans upon their return from the UAE.

The team, coming off a mixed tour against Afghanistan, including sweeping the T20I series 3-0 but losing the ODIs by the same margin, didn't get a positive welcome from their supporters. Mohammad Naim, one of the players targeted at the airport, later responded to the criticism through a social media post.

Addressing the issue ahead of the ODI series against the West Indies, Simmons asked his players not to engage on social platforms. Simmons also condemned the racial abuse directed at wicketkeeper-batter Jaker Ali, which has been seen both at grounds and online. 

"Okay. I'm glad you brought it up because, first of all, I don't agree with players having anything to do with social media. It is your right as a person to be on social media, to say what you want on social media. But as an international player, as a national player for Bangladesh, my players should not be on there. I would say one thing, it is not nice to bring racial tones into anything to do with players. I don't care where you're from, the racial part of it against Jaker Ali I am disgusted with. That's not nice. But I don't want my players answering anything on social media," he said as quoted by Cricbuzz.

Bangladesh vs West Indies Match Prediction, 1st ODI

Read More

Bangladesh vs West Indies Match Prediction, 1st ODI

Can't judge his captaincy: Phil Simmons

The incident triggered discussions within Bangladesh cricket about the team’s social media habits as players were frequently posting on platforms like Facebook, often drawing mixed reactions from supporters. While the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has not imposed any formal restrictions, team management has been concerned about the impact of social media on players’ mental well-being and performance. Simmons also backed under-pressure captain Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who has faced criticism after a poor run of results.

"You can't judge his captaincy on 200 runs at 198 and not chase him. Now, in the field you can judge his captaincy. And I think the captaincy in the field has been good. But winning games depends on your batsmen too. And if your batsmen don't score the runs that is needed, then you're going to be in trouble. So if I judge him on the field, I think he's been good," he added.