'We will fight till the last ball is bowled'

Former cricketer Shakil Kasem (3rd from L) addresses a press conference at the Jatiyo Press Club yesterday.Photo: STAR

The country's cricketers were roused into action and came under one umbrella yesterday, vowing to fight 'till the last ball is bowled' to win their rightful place as councillors of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB).
The former cricketers under the banner of “Cricketers of Bangladesh”, while raising their collective voice against the recent amendment in the BCB constitution that barred cricketers from becoming councillors, also expressed their grave concern over the way the game is being run in the country now.
“You can't run cricket without the cricketers. The intention of not involving cricketers in the cricket activities is not good because it simply creates chances for corruption. Cricket is now in the hands of non-cricketing interest groups, who work on the basis of personal interest only,” observed former BCB general secretary Tanvir Mazharul Islam Tanna.
Threatening tougher action, he also added: “We must take to the streets if president (AHM Mustafa Kamal) and Mr Tutul (BCB's influential director and head of the constitutional amendment committee Dewan Shafiul Arefin Tutul) think they know cricket much more than the cricketers. The cricket board is now not in the game; rather they are engaged in personal gain and corruption.”
Tanna also accused some people in the board of taking advantage of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's sport-friendly approach.
“What I felt is that there is a desperate need to make an audit by an independent firm to uncover the corruption,” he demanded.
Former Bangladesh captain Roquibul Hassan became emotional when talking about the way the board insulted the cricketers. He also pointed out the lack of professionalism in the board's activities.
“For the cricketers it's not a job (in the board), rather it is just slavery. While the world's other cricket boards are being run by professionals, our board is being run by the standing committees,” said Roquibul.
“You know our CEO (Manzur Ahmed) died of mental stress. He could not take the stress and he shared that with us,” Roquibul said in an accusing tone.
“We will fight till the last ball is bowled. In 2003, there were 10 councillors while in 2008 there were 15. Logical progression dictates that there should be more councillors. Our cricket culture is different from others and we need a homemade recipe for the development of cricket. We have a lot of standing committees, we need expertise there and cricketers can serve the purpose better,” said former cricketer and chairman of the development committee Shakil Kasem.
BCB director and former national skipper Gazi Ashraf Hossain also joined the protest campaign.
“In our country, the way regional associations are formed does not allow cricketers, even if they are interested, access to the body. There are councillors who are representing districts where cricket is not even played. Cricketers can complement, help and supplement the board,” said Gazi Ashraf.
BCB's former member Afzalur Rahman Sinha, former captains Faruque Ahmed and Khaled Mahmud demanded government interference to solve the current crisis.