Can the BCB boss answer so many questions today?
Where is the report of anti corruption and security unit (ACSU)? When will ACSU submit it? Will Mohammad Ashraful be banned? What will actually happen regarding allegations of fixing in international cricket? These were the questions that were floating in the cricketing circles yesterday as soon as news came that members of the ACSU had left the country in the morning.
According to reports, their two-day visit comprised interviews of certain officials of Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) franchise Dhaka Gladiators and a meeting with Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan Papon on Sunday night.
As a result, the board has decided to hold a press conference, with an aim to explain its position regarding the recent fixing allegations that have rocked the game in the country.
Speaking on the progress of the ACSU investigation, BCB officials said that the delegation was just one interview away from completing their report on match-fixing in the BPL. There are speculations that that interviewee could well be Salim Chowdhury, owner of the Gladiators, who is expected to return to the country today.
While the complete report will be received by the BCB only by the end of the week, it was learnt that a section of the BCB is putting pressure on the board to take a decision on Ashraful's fate based on ACSU's unofficial updates. Another section was in favour of waiting for the entire report before making the final call.
The decision will be taken in a meeting of the board directors, which will take place an hour before the scheduled press conference.
BCB sources have also revealed that the investigation regarding fixing in international cricket, an accusation made by a Bengali daily against a number of Bangladeshi cricketers, will take place separately within the ICC and that it will take a long time. ACSU's report on match-fixing in the BPL, on the other hand, is on the verge of completion and will be received by the BCB by the end of the week, informed the sources.
The sources further stated that the BCB would not form its own investigation committee upon receiving the ACSU report, something that the board was initially planning to do. If the report has enough evidence then a verdict will be declared.
However, the BCB will form its own committee to investigate allegations against the players against whom there is not enough evidence in the near future.
Various reports of match-fixing in the BPL and in international cricket hit the media over the past two weeks. A Bengali daily on Friday had alleged that Ashraful was involved in spot-fixing on the international circuit since 2004. The daily also accused former cricketers of introducing Ashraful to bookies at different points of the batsman's career.
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