Clubs in Bangladesh are boycotting the country’s First Division cricket

Domestic cricket in Bangladesh is on a path of uncertainty as clubs on Saturday boycotted the upcoming Dhaka First Division Cricket League over BCB constitution amendments.

The 20-team First Division cricket league is considered to be a promising ground for cricketers to make their mark and advance to the Dhaka Premier Division League, which is the traditional List A tournament in the country. Both tournaments, along with other tournaments held at clubs in Dhaka, are considered the main source of income for most cricketers.

Clubs have previously threatened to boycott the league over an allegedly controversial proposal to change the constitution. Then, on Saturday, they further revealed that they would not take part in the competition, which was to be attended by several representatives of the U-19 national team.

Club representatives informed the media of their position after a meeting with BCB president Faruque Ahmed at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Saturday.

“If our demands are not met, we will not take the field. It is obvious that we will not play until these conspiratorial activities against us are stopped. We are supporters of cricket, but unless necessary changes are made, we cannot and will not participate,” Lutfur Rahman Badal, a prominent organizer of the club, told reporters after the meeting.

Another club organizer, Rafiqul Islam Babu, said that the BCB chief assured that the issue would be resolved as soon as possible.

“The amendments proposed by the constitutional reform commission are directly contrary to the interests of club organizers. These changes are fundamentally insulting to the entire club community in Dhaka. If implemented, they will destabilize cricket in Bangladesh,” Babu said.

“Yes, he (BBC president) said he would dissolve the current (constitutional amendment) committee. That’s why he said he would ask for an extraordinary board meeting to be called and the committee to be dissolved. Then we’ll get back to the point. We have three demands: firstly, we want the management board to repeal the amended statute, secondly, we want to increase the number of club directors from 12 to 16, thirdly, we want the resignation of the head of the reform,” he added.

BCB president Faruque told Cricbuzz that he has received a letter from the club and will now take a decision after considering everything.

“I got a letter from the club and now we will see. Since I have not received anything (the amended version of the constitution), I cannot comment,” Faruque said.

“But the club is one of the biggest stakeholders in our cricket and we should keep that in mind before taking any steps,” he said.

The proposed changes include disbanding the CCDM, reducing the positions of Category 2 councilors and reducing the number of directors representing Dhaka-based clubs from 12 to 4. Additionally, the total number of BCB directors will be reduced from 25 to 21.