The cricketers’ welfare association of bangladesh: The Cricketers’ Welfare Association of Bangladesh (CWAB) has called for a long-term plan to support cricketers following the cancellation of this year’s Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, CWAB president Mohammad Mithun stated that the association is not seeking any alternative tournament as a means to directly compensate the financial loss experienced by cricketers due to the BPL’s absence. Instead, Mithun underscored the importance of enhancing the existing domestic cricket structure to create more sustainable financial opportunities for players in Bangladesh.
Mithun explained that there is no viable replacement for the BPL that could address the financial shortfall faced by cricketers. “First of all, there is no alternative to the BPL and there is no way to make up for the financial losses of the cricketers by organizing another tournament,” he remarked. He emphasized that holding a substitute event would not be feasible or beneficial in addressing the financial gap.
CWAB has already engaged in discussions with the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) regarding this issue. The focus has been on how domestic competitions, such as the National Cricket League (NCL) and Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL), could be structured to provide greater financial benefits to players. “We already know the plans for the games that we will have this year, routine-wise NCL, BCL would be held and the discussion was how these tournaments can benefit the players financially. We have discussed at length in this regard,” Mithun added.
The initiative, according to Mithun, has the potential to benefit approximately 150 to 200 cricketers over the long term. He also highlighted that the proposal was developed not just through discussions among CWAB members, but also in consultation with the national team captain and senior cricketers, including those currently abroad.
“Not only with the CWAB, we’ve discussed with the national captains. We are in contact with those who are not in the country now, over the phone. We discussed the details of which would be better and gave the proposal to the board,” Mithun added.