BPL franchises ready to sacrifice a year for BPL reforms

The BPL franchises said they were prepared to wait a year for the tournament if that allowed the competition to return with meaningful reforms in place © Cricbuzz

The BPL franchises said they were prepared to wait a year for the tournament if that allowed the competition to return with meaningful reforms in place © Cricbuzz

The Bangladesh Premier League franchises said on Saturday (August 29) they were prepared to wait a year for the tournament if that allowed the competition to return with meaningful reforms in place. They also called for a five-year calendar to help attract top international players to the league.

Bangladesh Cricket Board president Tamim Iqbal had earlier made it clear that the BPL could be postponed until next year if the proposed reforms could not be completed in time, with the board seeking a major overhaul to ensure it does not incur financial losses as it has in the past.

As a result, Tamim held a meeting at the BCB headquarters with three franchises - Rangpur Riders, Dhaka Capitals and current champions Rajshahi Warriors - to discuss a sustainable model, a long-term roadmap and a stricter compliance framework aimed at giving the country's premier T20 competition a more professional and stable future.

The franchises broadly welcomed the reform initiative but stressed that the new model must address long-standing concerns around sustainability, scheduling, player payments, franchise finances, integrity and the professional relationship between the board and franchise owners.

Rangpur Riders managing director and CEO Ishtiaque Sadeque said the BPL needed a fundamental rethink after a decade without a sustainable long-term structure. He said the franchises had asked the BCB to provide a five-year calendar from the next edition onwards, arguing that the lack of advance planning puts the BPL at a disadvantage in an increasingly crowded international T20 market.

“As for the BCB’s point of view, right now the BCB has taken a short break and is looking at how the entire tournament can be organised in a better way, with a more sustainable model. Our discussion was very fruitful, and among the three franchises that were here, there was a word from Rajshahi that I really liked: ‘reform,’” Ishtiaque told reporters following the meeting.

“The BPL needs reform because we have been here for the last 10 years, but we don’t have any constructive ideas and we don’t have any sustainable model and so whenever the next BPL takes place, we have asked for a five-year calendar,” he said.

“If the two sides, the BCB and the franchises, can develop these models together, eventually, in the long run, it will be much better for the BPL.

“We also discussed what the model would be like, starting from this time slot, which dates it would be held on, and for five years. From whenever the next BPL takes place, we have asked for a five-year calendar. Because when we go to contract players, in the international T20 market, there are a minimum of 20 franchise cricket competitions taking place. So our BPL gets the lowest priority. When we want to bring top-class players, we have said that we need to be given the calendar for five years,” he said.

Ishtiaque said players would need to have patience regarding the BPL, arguing that their payment issues could be addressed if the tournament was run under a proper model.

“Actually, you know better than us that, as far as the players’ bread and butter is concerned, this is how it is here. At the same time, when the BPL ends, these very players then chase the franchises. I have no shame in saying that Rangpur Riders have been here for 10 years; this has never happened to us. But even now, after January, today it has probably been running for seven or eight months, and we still have payments remaining for some local and international players,” said Ishtiaque.

“Because the sponsors who had agreements with us do not make the payments according to their commitments. And the market situation is getting so bad day by day that it will get even worse. So, rather than holding a nominal BPL, committing to paying Tk 30 lakh but then not paying the player the last Tk 15 lakh, not answering the phone and disappearing—it is better to take some time and do it under a good model,” he added.

Rajshahi Warriors CEO Moksadul Kamal Babu admitted that he was disappointed by the possibility of a break in the BPL’s annual cycle but said he was prepared to accept it if it ultimately benefited the tournament.

“Are we disappointed? Yes, we certainly are, because the continuity of a league is very important. When a league does not have continuity, the BPL is not just about a few days of matches,” he said.

“Beyond that, every franchise has a lot of work to do. From building the team to sponsorships, we work on these things throughout the entire year,” he added.

“So, from that perspective, having this continuity broken is somewhat of a disruption. But we are perhaps accepting that disruption for the greater good,” Babu explained.

Dhaka Capitals CEO Atik Fahad, meanwhile, issued the strongest warning from a franchise owner, saying he would not be willing to continue if the BPL were conducted under the same framework used during the last two editions.

“If it continues the way it has been for the last two years, I will not stay. For the last two years we have invested money, but at the end of the day I am the one who has received the abuse from people,” he said.

Atik said the BCB president had made it clear that the BPL would continue, but had asked the franchises whether they wanted another edition under the existing structure or a cleaner competition built through reforms.

“The president has said that the BPL will definitely happen. Now the important question is whether it will happen this year,” Atik said.

“He threw some questions at us — whether we want the BPL to continue the way it has been conducted in previous years or whether we want a clean BPL through reforms,” he said.