Rope running out?

SABBIR RAHMAN

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan  returned to the country on Wednesday evening after performing hajj and made his presence felt the following day. Unfortunately for batsman Sabbir Rahman, the BCB supremo said that his repeated disciplinary indiscretions played a part in his omission from the 15-man squad for next month's Asia Cup.

"Sabbir had to be called by the [disciplinary] committee, so there will be a decision after that. And definitely that has had an impact [on his omission]," Hassan told reporters yesterday in Mirpur.

Sabbir will face the committee tomorrow to give his side of threatening a Facebook user hours after Bangladesh lost the second ODI against West Indies on July 27, which led the user to criticise the batsman in a Facebook post.

Two other players will also face the committee tomorrow -- Nasir Hossain, who is in trouble because he was a participant in an unsavoury Youtube video, and Mosaddek Hossain because of being recently sued by his wife of six years. The president, however, seemed to separate instances of personal problems from behavioural short-circuits in which Sabbir has been involved -- he had previously assaulted a young spectator in December 2017 and ordered officials to keep their mouths shut.

"There are some who we have been punishing, but if they keep repeating their wrongdoings, we have to punish them harshly," said the president, adding that the BCB will have to be given time to ascertain the veracity of allegations.

"If there has been a wrongdoing, we will try to keep the perpetrator away from any further such action. But if he does not keep away, then a final decision will have to be taken, and to me there is only one final decision -- he won't be in the national team."

He also added that the BCB were mulling whether to bar players from using social media while on tour and drawing up a set of dos and don'ts that they have to be signatories to. However, in a frank mood, while saying that BCB never helped or sought to help those against whom there were complaints, he admitted to an exception.

"Except one -- Rubel [Hossain, who was embroiled in legal turmoil before the 2015 World Cup]. At that time, we tried to take him to the World Cup."

In that was an admission of the BCB clearly prioritising performance over issues of player conduct in the past. However, leaving Sabbir out -- although it was not the toughest course because of his poor recent performances -- may be a sign that the camel's back has finally been broken.