I can learn a lot from Rhodes: Salahuddin

Cumilla Victorians head coach Mohammad Salahuddin stated that he has a lot of things to learn from former Bangladesh head coach Steve Rhodes who joined the franchise as their advisor today.

Salahuddin believed that Rhodes' experience will certainly be a boon for the Victorians.  

"He [Rhodes] is a very experienced coach, and I think he is one of the most successful coaches that Bangladesh national team have had. He came here as our advisor and I believe he can bring a lot of good for the team and I can learn a lot of things from him," Salahuddin told the journalists after his side's training session at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur today.
 
Meanwhile, reports emerged that Victorians' national team star Liton Das will not be taking part in their first two Bangladesh Premier League encounters. However, the head coach said the decision was yet to be made.

"I haven't talked with Liton yet. We will take the decision after I have a chat with him," Salahuddin added.

"The national team players who just returned from New Zealand were in the bio-bubble for a long time and they also need refreshment. They have families too and they will be given enough rest before joining in. The same goes for the local players who just finished BCL [Bangladesh Cricket League] as it was a long tournament," the head coach added, indicating that granting Liton a break is likely.

Cumilla Victorians have roped in a bunch of international superstars for this edition of BPL with the likes of Faf Du Plessis, Sunil Narine, Cameron Delport and Oshane Thomas in the squad.

However, Salahuddin said that without a decent performance from the local players, big foreign names would not be of any help.

"If the local players don't perform throughout the tournament, the foreign players won't be of much help. It's a long tournament and both the local and international players should perform side by side if you want to be the champions," he concluded.