Did you know? Chelsea yesterday have named an unchanged XI for the first time in the Premier League since 28th October 2012 (v Manchester United)
Sport
Sunday, August 24, 2014
14 Costa scores
again as Chelsea snare Foxes
15 Maqsood, Fawad
stun Sri Lanka in first ODI
DHAKA TRIBUNE
13
15 Nothing wrong
with Bangladesh batsmen: Narine
BPL third edition on the cards? Tournament Governing Council eyes end of this year as possible window pensation. However, as eight months n Minhaz Uddin Khan of the year 2014 is already past, the Chairman of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) governing council Afzalur Rahman Sinha has revealed that Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is considering to hold the third edition of BPL ahead of the next ICC World Cup-2015 scheduled to be held in Australia-New Zealand. The money-spinning domestic Twenty20 tournament hit a stumbling block since its 2nd edition in January-February 2013. Irregularities in players’ payment, mismanagement, match fixing allegations and a subsequent but prolonged investigation followed by trials are the reasons why the tournament has failed to see light even though it has been 18 months since BPL 2 ended.
We’ve held a meeting where we’ve discussed many issues from the 1st and 2nd BPL and besides these, some decisions regarding BPL 3 have also been taken “We are hopeful to hold BPL 3,” said BPL GC chief Sinha after coming out from a BPL GC meeting at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium yesterday. “We want to organise the tournament between December 2014 and January 2015, ahead of the next ICC World Cup-2015,” Sinha added further. This is the first time since the second BPL that BPL GC seems to have taken a strong move of organizing the next edition of the tournament and taking the aftermath of the unwanted events following the end of BPL 2 into consideration, this move is certainly worthy of giving rise to questions. It was learned upon query that BCB is looking to avoid legal issues understandably. According to the contract between BCB and the seven BPL franchises, the board is responsible to organize the tournament every year and failing to do so will give the franchises an opportunity to take legal action, and ask for monetary com-
BPL GC aims to start the tournament before the December 31 deadline while keeping a close eye on the Tigers’ Future Tours Programme (FTP) commitments in mind. Bangladesh are scheduled to host Zimbabwe in a Test and ODI series in early November while Pakistan are supposed to tour Bangladesh in January 2015 according to the FTP of International Cricket Council (ICC). “Considering the gap in the FTP, we have provisionally fixed a slot and taken decision to hold the next BPL. We’ve tentatively decided to hold BPL3 towards the end of the current year,” said Sinha. “We’ve held a meeting where we’ve discussed many issues from the 1st and 2nd BPL and besides these, some decisions regarding BPL 3 have also been taken.” However, Sinha, also an influential board director of BCB, refused to give any further details, “But we cannot reveal any more about it at the moment. We will first place our decisions in the next board meeting and once approved, we will disclose all about most of the issues.” Dhaka Tribune learned from sources withing BCB that the BPL GC plans to bring a major change in the format of the money spinning Twenty20 tournament which includes replacing the franchisees, revising the players’ fee structure and reducing loopholes from the legal contracts. The next BCB meeting is scheduled to take place on August 26 and this meeting has become all the more significant as alongside the final decision on BPL-3, a decision regarding the reconsideration of the ban slapped on all-rounder Shakib al Hasan is also supposed to be taken in that meeting. The former national skipper was suspended from all forms of cricket for six months and will not be issued NOCs until December 31, 2015 due to his indiscipline. Shakib later appealed to the board to reduce the sanctions on his national and international sporting activities. l
Bangladesh Under-23 forward Aminur Rahman Sajib celebrates after scoring the winning goal against Bangladesh Army at the Army Stadium yesterday
MUMIT M
Awful defence mars U23s’ final practice match n Shishir Hoque The Bangladesh Under-23 football team displayed an awful defensive performance in their fourth practice match as they toiled hard before eventually overcoming an amateur Bangladesh Army side 5-4 at a soggy Army Stadium pitch in Dhaka yesterday. The 5-4 scoreline clearly portrays how shaky the defence was as all the four goals shipped by the national side were conceded in the first half. The only positive the national team can take forward from this match is the way they came back from a 4-2 deficit in the second half. The U23s defeated the same opponents comfortably by 3-1 nine days ago following which Bangladesh’s Dutch head coach Lodewijk de Kruif left for the Netherlands to attend to his ailing father. Assistant coach Rene Koster deployed a 4-4-2 formation in the opening half which went horribly wrong. A
4-3-3 formation, however, introduced in the second half rescued him from further humiliation, thanks to defender Atikur Rahman Meshu’s brilliant hattrick. “The first half was horrible, terrible from our side. Everybody was very nervous. But I’m glad that they showed it today (yesterday), not Tuesday, which
RESULT BD U-23 Wahed 10 Meshu 14, 56, 63 Sajib 83
5 4
BD Army Silon 13, 31 Tarek 22, 39
will be a more important match. Now I know which players can handle the pressure and which players can’t, which players can build up and which can’t,” said Koster after the game. “The second half was much better. I want the players to get prepared for Tuesday and play like the way we played in the second half today (yes-
terday),” added Koster. The U-23 side will face Nepal at home in the first of two friendlies on August 26 as part of their preparation for the upcoming 17th Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea next month. It was goals galore in the opening half yesterday which began with Bangladesh taking the lead with just 10 minutes into the clock through their inform striker Wahed Ahmed who continued to prove his worth in the side. Silon Khan though equalised for Army three minutes later before Meshu put his side ahead again just a minute later. Army captain Tareq Aziz restored parity in the 22nd minute but the visitors’ plight worsened when Silon and Tarek each netted one more in the 31st and 39th minutes respectively to take the scoreline to 4-2. Koster made some changes in the second half favouring skipper Mamunul Islam, Babu and Meshu as his midfield trio in a 4-3-3 formation. Me-
shu showed great skills by scoring two more to complete his hattrick - one from a free-kick in the 56th minute and the other from the penalty spot in the 63rd minute. Aminur Rahman Sajib continued to impress and had an immediate effect on the match by grabbing the winning goal in the 83rd minute after coming on as a substitute. When queried why the Bangladesh backline was often troubled by the Army attackers, Koster gave his reasons behind the poor display. “Of course it is alarming but don’t forget we couldn’t train all week due to rain and water on the practice ground. We only went to the gym and trained lightly at some small parts of the field. It was our first practice match in a week,” he said. Meanwhile, national team manager Amirul Islam Babu informed that De Kruif will arrive tomorrow and will be present during Bangladesh’s first friendly against Nepal on Tuesday. l
National cricketer slams 10 goals as big guns rout day two RESULTS Midas Financing Hotel Orchard Trust Bank Rahimafrooz Bangla Cat Tiger IT STS Group Chevron BD NSU Incepta MM Ispahani Bangla Trac General Electric Pepsi ULAB
(won via walkover)
1 4 0 16 3 2 1 4 3 7 0 13 2 2 3 7 2 1 3 3 1 2 4 1 2 4 3 2 v
Qubee Beximco Pharma IPDC IIDFC HRC Group Gemcon Group HSBC Securex Kazi Farms Stellar Digital Therap BD BAT Spellbound Citybank Airtel
n Arsalan Quddus The big guns of the tournament have been piling the pressure on the minnows and newbies of the group stages, and that reflected directly on the score line in the first six games yesterday. As many as 54 goals were netted in those matches of the second day with many of them in double digits. Debutantes Hotel Orchard Suites were in for rude awakening by the tournament favourites, Beximco Pharma, who made the Orchard goalkeeper pick the ball out of their nets a total of 16 times! Arafat Sunny, who also happens to be a national cricket player, of Beximco Pharma scored a total of 10 goals in the match alone - surely a tournament record. It also makes him a front runner for the Golden Boot. A shell shocked Orchard Suites were left to lick their
An action from the match between Securex and Chevron BD yesterday
COURTESY
wounds and prepare for their next match. Qubee continued their winning run after upsetting last years champions by beating Midas Financing, 4-1. The game was tied at a goal a piece at half time after a spirited performance by the newcomers. But Qubee’s experience showed in the 2nd half as Rakib scored a fine brace in the closing minutes. Noor-e-Alam and Yasir also added to Qubee’s cause while Zunaid Bin Islam pulled one back for the financial firm. Newcomers and associate sponsor IPDC put on a valiant effort against tournament old boys Trust Bank Ltd. The game may have ended 3-2 for Trust Bank, but it was the leasing company that left the STM Hall with their heads held high. Team captain Samiur Rahman scored a brace for IPDS and guided his boys to a respectful finish. IIDFC’s captain Biplob guided his team to a 4-1 win against Rahimafrooz Storage and scoring 2 in the process. Shohib Haider Noon Hossain adding a goal each for IIDFC. Bangla Cat have faced HRC Group many times over the years in this very tournament. But if ever an encounter epitomized the phrase “familiarity breeds contempt”, it would have to be this one. The two went at each other with hammer and tongs, but it was HRC who proved too strong in the final whistle as they out scored Cat in a 7-3 encounter. Rion doing his goal tally no harm as he scored 4 screamers for HRC bringing his total to nine in two games with teammate Sijon on seven. Md Arifur scored a double for Bangla Cat. Tiger IT found out how ruthless the Ascent Cup can be to debutante teams as the in-form Gemcon Group romped home with 13-0 pasting. At times it almost seemed as if it were a Gemcon practice session, as they passed the ball around with ease, much to
IPDC players celebrate scoring a goal against Trust Bank at the STM Hall yesterday the Tiger IT’s frustration. Apart from the three hattrick heroes - Shamim, Monu and Munna Rikto and Punnell Hombron scored braces. STS Group and HSBC were locked in a vicious dogfight which ended in 2-2 draw. STS’s poster boy and part time rock idol, Jabed got on the score sheet along with teammate Omar Faruk. HSBC’s Nazmul Huda scoring two for his side. Securex were looking ominous as they took their old foes Chevron to the cleaners in a 7-3 romp. Their lively No 9 Shoriful scoring four past the Chevron keeper, while Mosabber and Monir also added to the security companies cause. Atik scored 2 for Chevron and Mannaf added another for the oil and gas explorers. Newcomers North South University faced another debutante team Kazi Farm
and won the tie with a solitary goal. The faculty members were all smiles at the final whistle while Kazi Farm were left to reflect on what went wrong. However, with Group I still wide open, they are still in a position to turn their fortunes around should they beat Viz RT in their next match. Pharmaceutical giants Incepta played out a hard fought 3-3 draw against Stellar Digital. Ahad, Salman and Mahir converted for the Stellar, while Shyak pulled 2 back Incepta, and Awal added another. The Big Bang Theory (Therap BD) clawed out 2-1 victory against a plucky MM Isphani Ltd team. Safwan and Saad both featuring in the score line for Therap while Amin pulled one back for Ispahani. Ascent Cup stalwarts Bangla Trac went head to head against British American Tobacco and their star striker Em-
COURTESY
ran Khan put four past BAT goalkeeper Shihan. The tobacco firm must have found the going tough after their 3 year absence in this tournament and having such seasoned opposition as Bangla Trac did not help one bit. The absence of Shiblee Shakik Ahmed weighed heavily on the tobacconists shoulder. Rookie team Spellbound virtually pulled a rabbit out of their hat by beating General Electric in their 2nd match of Group N. Jubair Azaz scoring a cool hattrick for the PR firm. It was back to the drawing board for GE, as they prepare for damage control against Metlife Alico who they face in their next fixture. l Arsalan Quddus is a key member of the organiser Excalibur Entertainment, a die hard Manchester United fan and also a passionate football fanatic.