Shakib as BPL CEO? May be not such a good idea

Us Bangladeshis are a bit punk rock. We love to, as they say, 'stick it to the man'. In other words, we love it when someone speaks up against the authority when they overstep their boundaries. Just look at Kazi Nazrul Islam and how revered and influential he is for our people. 

Now that brings us to unarguably our greatest-ever cricketer, Shakib Al Hasan and his comments about the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) T20 franchise tournament and how he could manage it far better if he was the CEO. 

How it would take him a few months at max to make the tournament far better and more appealing to the masses than it currently is.

While the all-rounder's exploits on the field is undisputed and puts him in with the greats of 'the gentleman's game', his demeanour and behaviour off the field (and sometimes on it) are hardly gentlemanly. 

And that has ended up dividing opinion among people about Shakib. While some view him as a bit of an anti-hero and the voice of the voiceless, a rebel against the system and oppressors. Others view him as an agent of chaos and one that does whatever it takes to keep himself relevant and in the news. In short, Shakib sells and sells well. 

So why would Shakib make those comments about the BPL and its management and more importantly, would he actually make a difference and a positive change as its CEO? 

The answer to the first question is simple as the BPL hasn't really done much for Bangladesh cricket, if anything at all. 

The T20I side hasn't improved because of it and the brand of cricket is still very akin to how they play in ODIs - not a good look. 

Nor has it managed to produce new talents that can come up to the international stage and shine for the Tigers. 

There are plenty of other areas where it has been lacking but that's a story for another day.

Now let's come to the second question, and try to answer that, based on Shakib's record in his many other business ventures. 

In 2015 Shakib started his business career with a restaurant named 'Shakib's Dine'. He later sold the venture due to poor sales. 

A year later in 2016, he inaugurated his agro-business Shakib Agro Farm Limited for crab and Kuch farming. The farm is currently closed now and workers have protested after not getting their wages several times in recent years. 

In 2015 he also joined an event management company 'Fiesta' which has later been accused of human trafficking to Japan and Shakib eventually left that organisation too. 

In 2018, Shakib made an investment in the residential hotel business in Saudi Arabia and later in 2020 he also started a travel agency, 'Shah-75 Tours and Travel Management', targeting umrah pilgrims. The travel agency is also now off due to a lack of customers. 

In 2021 May, Shakib's Monarch Holdings started its journey in the stock market where he is the chairman of the holdings company.  

On 31 January 2022, Monarch Mart an e-commerce platform was launched. Shakib is the chairman there too. 

In November 2022, investigations by the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) once again found the involvement of Monarch Holdings in the share price manipulation of IPDC Finance Limited.

And on 4 January this year, he was named CEO of Gulf Oil Company Bangladesh Limited. 

It is here, where the promotion had a 'CEO for a day' theme and Shakib made the comment about being BPL CEO for a day, like in the movie Nayak.

Previously, he had done something similar when he signed up with Betwinner, despite there being restrictions on BCB-contracted players signing up with betting companies. 

So at times, Shakib created controversy but also helped people know about the name of the company and the brand so 'job done' there to some extent.

But in other cases, when he was in managerial roles or as a business partner, it can be surmised that his choice of business and decision-making in choosing the right business wasn't up to the mark.

The comment about him being CEO for a day may have been a tongue-in-cheek one from him and people can even question if this deserves any analysis of any sort of any serious attention given to it at all. But there is no ignoring the comments made by him and his only saving grace could be that he's a cricketer and he'll understand the dynamics of managing a cricket-based operation far better than anything else. 

However, even there, the results under his captaincy don't look too impressive and raise more questions than answers. 

His record as captain in the Test team has 15 losses out of 18 games including one against Afghanistan at home.

In T20Is as captain, he has 22 losses from 31 games, though the team is showing signs of improvement.

It can be argued that both the teams he's captain of are in transition and he needs more time.

But how much time do you give? 

And more importantly, how serious is Shakib about being CEO of the BPL?  

Answers which we can truly get if Shakib is honestly serious about Bangladesh cricket and taking charge of things once his playing days come to an end.