At the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, current and past national cricket players, led by Tamim Iqbal, met on the spur of the moment with Faruque Ahmed, president of the Bangladesh Cricket Board, because they felt offended by the board’s recent actions.
Recently, Towhid Hridoy became a hot topic when Nazmul Abedin Fahim, the convener of the CCDM technical committee and the chairman of BCB cricket operations, announced on April 24 that Mohammedan Sporting Club captain Towhid Hridoy would be suspended for the team’s match against Gazi Group on April 26.
Hridoy’s early return to the field after serving just one game of a two-game suspension sparked much criticism, which led to the decision. While Cricbuzz learned that BCB elite umpire Sharafuddoula Ibne Saikat, who was present at the Dhaka Premier League match where Hridoy misbehaved, also submitted his resignation to the board because he was not prepared to continue after the ban was lifted, former CCDM technical committee convener Enamul Haque Moni resigned in protest of the way the Hridoy case was handled.
In addition, there were further incidents. After the BCB announced that they had launched an investigation after concerns were raised regarding the Bashundhara Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League 2024-25 match between Gulshan Cricket Club and Shinepukur Cricket Club, the Anti Corruption United members of the BCB called Naeem and Sabbir of Shinepukur Club to the academy ground of the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. There, ACU officials attempted to recreate the contentious dismissal using cameras placed on either side of the central wicket. On April 9, 2025, the match took place at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur.
Tamim stated that it was really upsetting for them when the names of ten cricket players were revealed in the public during the most recent BPL, as suspected by ACU. “We’ve all gathered here mostly because of various situations that have disturbed the players in recent months. After the meeting, Tamim informed reporters, “I want to share two or three points.”
“Firstly, the Tawhid Hridoy issue. There was an incident with Hridoy in the field and he was suspended for two matches. When he was suspended, none talked about that. Umpires and match referee punished him. The decision may seem harsh to some us, but no one protested. But then, we saw that the punishment was reduced to one match. The decision also came from BCB and no one protested again. After serving one-match-ban, Hridoy played two matches,” he said.
“Yesterday, he had been suspended again. I don’t know, in which law he is suspended. It was a funny incident. He, who has already served his suspension, cannot be suspended again after being allowed to play two matches. How can you suspend him again? This was our main concern,” he said.
“Secondly, everyone saw some unpleasant incidents in the Gulshan-Shinepukur match a few days ago. We said to the board already that if there was any type of corruption, if the players made mistakes, we all want proper punishment. But that doesn’t mean that you will make those players recreate those scenes. None has the right to do it. There is no rule in any anti-corruption commission in the world that allows you to insult them in front of media,” he said.
“There was a list of ten players which came in media from BPL. We all want the proper punishment of the guilty players. But, be it two or eight, there were some innocent ones. Leaking their names in media is insulting. We all were disappointed with this incident. We requested the Board President to come. He came with two directors. We had a big discussion and showed our points,” he said.
“About the Hridoy-controversy, we urged to take decision quickly as the game is scheduled tomorrow. I am sure that they will announce a decision quickly. We all have gathered today because the incidents of last two-three months were bothering everyone,” he said.
“It is not important whether Mohammedan pressurized BCB to let Hridoy play or not. BCB allowed him to play, then how can he be punished again in the same case? We had cleared our stance on this incident. Now the board will take the decision,” he added.
BCB’s response
BCB have now issued a clarification saying the technical committee has deferred Hridoy’s two-match suspension over a period of 12 months. “This considered approach was adopted with the intent to uphold the integrity of the game, support the continuity of the current tournament, and promote a spirit of unity and sportsmanship within the cricketing community,” the BCB said in a statement.
