Where non-payment is the norm

The 'art' of non-payment seems to have become synonymous with the game of cricket in Bangladesh in the last few years. Ever since the first season of the Bangladesh Premier League T20, when players encountered this problem in a big way for the first time, the 'art' seems to have spread throughout the different branches of the sport.
Take for instance the country's premier 50-over competition, the Dhaka Premier League, which has been the domestic players' main source of income. Until last year the clubs were almost impeccable when it came to clearing their players' payments.
Yes, there have been many times when a small portion of the player's money was kept in order to reserve him for the following year, but seldom did it resemble the farce of the BPL. That is of course, until the last DPL, which took place in September last year.
According to players, only three out of the 12 clubs in the competition have cleared their payments, with the remaining players left in the lurch.
What must frustrate the players even more is that payments in the last league followed a new system which required the clubs to pay a lot less than in previous seasons. For instance, according to the 'player-by-choice' system last year, the highest possible bid that a club could have made for a player was around Tk 25 lakh, a significant reduction from almost Tk 40 lakh in the previous year.
The league was also delayed a number of times last year, which has eventually led to players missing out on one season -- the 2012-2013 which took place in 2013-14.
It has been desperate times for many players, some of whom have just given up hope. Veteran Tushar Imran, for instance, has just received 40 per cent of his payments; it's the sort of trouble that he has never had to face before.
National batsman Nasir Hossain's condition is far worse. He claims to have received just 25 per cent of his payments. Nasir is a nationally contracted player and can perhaps manage with the sponsors and considerable yearly income. However, as former national player Rajin Saleh puts it, the non-national players have been the worst sufferers.
“When the management asked us tot play this league despite the delay, we did so. They promised that they would make up for the delay by hosting two leagues this season but that is not happening, and that's disappointing,
“Also because of the player-by-choice system we played with less money and unfortunately a majority of the players did not receive even that amount. When we ask the board, they tell us to contact the governing committee of the league (Cricket Committee of Dhaka Metropolis),” Rajin said.
“But the sad part is, CCDM's chairman is the owner of Brothers Union, and he himself could not clear the payments of this club. Who will we report to?” added a desperate Rajin.
It is not just the DPL payments that are due. The BCB is yet to dispatch its monthly salary to the 105 non-national players who they had brought under contract in 2012. Officials state that the board is reportedly three months behind and is working on renewing the contracts.
“How long will they take to renew it? Honestly speaking, these are really bad times. Some of the players, who should be playing the Premier Division League, are in fact thinking of signing up with first division clubs just so that they can get some money in hand. Some of these players are that poor!” exclaimed Rajin.
While players continue to suffer on the one hand, on the other, those who played for Prime Doleshwar, Gazi Tank and Prime Bank Cricket Club received their payment and are thanking their stars.
“I feel very lucky that I got my money in time. But it's not the same with everyone. I am in the national team so it won't make a big difference to me, but for the others it's difficult,” said off-spinner Shohag Gazi, who played for Prime Doleshwar.
Former vice-captain Mahmudullah Riyad echoed Gazi's sentiments. “I played for Gazi Tank. Not only did I get the complete money, but we also got bonuses for winning the tournament. I can't comment on the cases of the other players.”