Did criticism prompt BCB’s realisation?

After a long journey, the curtain is about to fall on the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). The stage is set at Mirpur's Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium for the final, and so are the two competing teams—Fortune Barishal and Chattogram Kings. That is all that was prepared; until the afternoon before the final, the BPL Governing Council and the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) had no special plans in place. Even the customary trophy photoshoot with the captains of the two finalists had completely slipped their minds.

Before the tournament begins, a photoshoot is usually arranged with the captains of the participating teams. However, no such event took place in this edition of the BPL. The organisers did not even feel the urgency to arrange a photoshoot with the two captains ahead of the final. The matter sparked discussions from Thursday morning, and by the afternoon, Fortune Barishal's captain Tamim Iqbal spoke about it. It was only later in the day that the BCB realised the oversight and, at 5:30 pm, issued a statement announcing that a photoshoot with the two captains would take place at 7:30 pm at a hotel in Dhaka.

One might ask—why was the photoshoot venue a hotel? The answer is simple: both teams were staying at that hotel. Given the hasty arrangement, the BCB found it to be the most convenient location. Due to the lack of prior planning, a more organised event was not possible. However, in the previous two editions of the BPL, the board had chosen iconic locations for the pre-final photoshoot. In the 2023 BPL, the event was held at a metro station, while the most recent edition had its photoshoot in front of the historic Ahsan Manzil.

The BCB's response made it clear that no such arrangement had been planned this time. When several BCB directors were contacted regarding the matter, they admitted to having no knowledge of it. Even the top officials responsible for the BPL had no information to offer. Instead, they requested that the issue not be reported. Speaking on condition of anonymity, one BCB director told The Business Standard, "It would have been better if this event had taken place. Since it did not, discussions are expected. We should have been more responsible."

Neither of the two finalists was informed in advance about the photoshoot or an official pre-final press conference. On Thursday, Fortune Barishal trained at the academy ground in Mirpur. After their session, they organised their own press conference, informing the media beforehand. Chattogram Kings, on the other hand, did not train and did not find it necessary to visit Mirpur Stadium. Instead, they held their official press conference at their team hotel. At 2:30 pm, the team informed the media that their press conference would take place at 5:00 pm.

Such a precedent does not exist for the national team. Even in professional tournaments, this is a rare occurrence. Finding another instance where a team held its pre-final press conference at a hotel instead of the match venue would be difficult. Sources from Chattogram Kings confirmed that the BCB had not issued any directives about conducting the press conference at the venue. When asked why no instructions were given, one BCB director expressed surprise but refused to take responsibility. "It is standard practice for teams to hold press conferences at the venue or stadium. This should not happen. Why would the BCB have to tell them that? Everyone already knows it," he said.

When asked about the photoshoot, Tamim Iqbal acknowledged that more could have been done. The Fortune Barishal captain noted that despite several shortcomings, there were positives in this edition of the BPL. "A lot more could have been done, a lot of things could have been arranged—we can debate this endlessly. But we must also acknowledge that many things have been done well. The cricket on the field has been good, the wickets, the scoring—all were positive. There is no doubt that many areas still need improvement. But at the end of the day, this is our own tournament. I, along with many other cricketers and the media, have raised questions. However, this is still our tournament."

"We must find a way to sustain it so that we can have the opportunity to make it better next year. If we keep criticising it every day, the message that goes abroad is not a good one. Of course, we are making mistakes that do not send positive messages internationally. I am not defending these issues, but sometimes, if we can manage our own house carefully, it benefits not just the cricketers but everyone involved. We need to think about how we can uphold the tournament's integrity," Tamim added.

In the last edition of the BPL, Fortune Barishal and Comilla Victorians played the final. Tamim was the captain of Barishal, while Litton Das led Comilla. However, for the Ahsan Manzil photoshoot, Barishal was represented by Mehidy Hasan Miraz, while Comilla's representative was Jaker Ali Anik. Tamim later explained that since they had played a match the previous night, attending the morning photoshoot was difficult. He admitted his own fault as well but emphasised that teams should be informed about such plans well in advance.

Reflecting on the previous edition's photoshoot, Tamim said, "Last time, Miraz and Jaker Ali went. It should have been me and Litton Das. We were also at fault. But if these things were planned better… for instance, I did not go because we had played the semi-final (qualifier) the night before. It was nearly impossible for me to wake up and go to that location. I am sure it would have been better if I had gone. But if we had known the plan in advance, things could have been arranged in a more structured manner."