Men’s, women’s squads trimmed
In a change of approach, the Bangladesh Table Tennis Federation (BTTF) have decided to trim both the men’s and women’s squads for the Asian Table Tennis Championships, a four-day affair which is set to begin on September 19 at the Amonggoro sport stadium in Indonesia’s Yogyakarta province.
In the past, the game’s local governing body sent four-member squads to all international competitions. However, this time around the BTTF elected to send three-member men’s and women’s teams. The BTTF cited financial constraints as a driving force behind the decision despite the fact that the tournament organisers will bear the accommodation and food expenses for all participating players and officials.
The men’s team features Mahbub Billah, Manosh Chowdhury and Muhotasin Ahmed Ridoy while the women’s team consists of Sonam Sultana Soma, Moumita Alam Rumi and Rahima Khatun.
Asked about their contingency plan should any member of the team fall sick or become injured during the championships, BTTF general secretary Sheikh Mohammad Jahangir Alam said that the financial situation has left them with little to no options.
“Actually, we don’t have anything to do because the financial condition of the federation is not good, so we can’t send an additional player with the squad. We haven’t even managed the sponsors and we are arranging the air tickets for the players. We have to bear all expenditures except accommodation and food,” said Alam.
Alam also informed that the officials who will accompany the team will bear the cost of their own expenditures.
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