‘We get down during partnerships’

Chairman of Bangladesh Cricket Board's (BCB) Women's Wing Shafiul Alam Chowdhury Nadel confirmed that the 26 contracted players of the national team pool did not get paid for five months due to a 'technical reason'. 

Nigar Sultana Joty's troops clinched a 2-1 ODI series win over Pakistan after winning the third and final match in Mirpur on Friday after which it was reported that the players had not been getting their wages for five months.

Nadel explained the whole scenario pointing out that the board had not signed on the agreed contract list of players that needed to be sent to the accounts section for approval of the players' wages.

"It's because of a technical reason. We delivered the contract list (of players) to the board long before. Now, if the accounts department does not receive it from the board then they cannot approve the salaries. 

"Since everyone was busy playing in series, tournaments, and camps, no one felt the financial difficulty nor did anyone inform me about it. I got to know four to five days back," Nadel told The Daily Star on Monday.

According to Nadel, none of the players had notified him about this mishap and did not create a ruckus despite not being paid for a period of five months. 

Following the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in South Africa in February, the national team played series against Sri Lanka, India and them went to China to take part in the Asian Games before taking on Pakistan at home.  

"I told Papon bhai about it at a dinner party two days ago after the series win against Pakistan. I had discussions about it with the CEO before this. The players did not create an issue out of this. We have confirmed the list and they will receive their salaries in the next one or two days," he said.

The series win over Pakistan propelled the Tigresses to seventh on the ICC Women's Championship standings. The top six teams will qualify directly for the World Cup in 2025 in India.

Bangladesh speedster Taskin Ahmed made an instant impact on his return to Test cricket after 14 months as he came up with a sensational bowling performance on the second day of the second Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi yesterday. 

Taskin finished with 3-57, helping his side bowl out the hosts for 274 runs in their first innings within a day after the game finally started on the Day 2 after the opening day's play got washed out.

Taskin had taken a break from the longer-format earlier this year citing injury issues but after the end of the last ICC T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA, he changed his mind and made himself available for selection for the Pakistan Test series.

The selection panel also showed faith on the experienced pacer as they picked him for the second Test squad but before that, they wanted to see how Taskin fared in the longer-version.

And for that, they played him in the second four-day match against Pakistan Shaheens where he bowled 15 overs and also dismissed Imam-ul-Haq in the first ball of his opening spell.

Similarly, the 29-year-old, who previously played 13 Tests since his debut in this format in 2017, tasted success almost immediately, going through the defences of Pakistani opener Abdullah Shafique with a splendid in-swinger in the last ball of the first over of the game after Bangladesh chose to field first.

Taskin, who came in as a replacement for the injured Shoriful Islam, set up Shafique brilliantly as he bowled his first five deliveries outside off, moving away from the batter, before finally pitching the ball on a good length and bringing it back sharply into the batter, hitting the top of off-stump.

"That wicket [Shafique's] was really enjoyable for me. First, I set him up with away moving ones and then in the last one I brought it back into him. That was intentional," Taskin told the reporters in the press meet after the end of the second day's play.

Taskin didn't get any more successes in his first spell where he bowled four overs but kept the pressure on Shan Masood and Saim Ayub, who went on to score fifties, and when he came back to bowl his next two spells, he carried on from where he had left off.

At one time, Saud Shakeel, the middle-order batter who scored a hundred in the opening Test, hit him for back-to-back boundaries. But Taskin had the last laugh, as he knocked over Shakeel's stumps in the same over to send him back to the pavilion.

Bangladesh kept taking wickets at regular intervals from the second session onwards. With Pakistan quickly running out of wickets, Salman Agha, the No.7 batter, decided to try and hit some boundaries against the second new ball and smashed Taskin for two sixes in consecutive overs.

Taskin, however, kept baiting Salman, who made 54, into going for big shots and eventually his plan worked as the batter mishit a pull shot and got caught at fine leg by Shakib Al Hasan and Mehedi Hasan Miraz soon wrapped up the innings by completing his 10th five-for in Tests.

"Overall, our bowling unit has done really well. We could have done better. I'm working on everything, as I have been playing for a long time, to adapt to the format quickly. It's my responsibility as an experienced and senior bowler.

"We have to bat really well. We have to comeback well in the second innings. Nothing is over yet but it was a good day for us which could have been even better."

Sri Lanka fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana was Friday backed by coach Chris Silverwood to be the "X Factor" at the World Cup.

The 20-year-old, dubbed "Baby Malinga" for his copycat style of compatriot Lasith Malinga's unorthodox action, has only played 10 ODIs and one T20 but is tipped to be amongst the tournament's breakout stars.

His first chance to impress will come on Saturday when 1996 champions Sri Lanka take on South Africa in New Delhi in their World Cup opener.

"To get away from the orthodox bowling action, to see someone like Pathirana, for me it was, okay, how do I work with this guy?" said Silverwood.

"I find myself listening to him a lot because I'm not going to tinker with his action. It's his own, it's his, and it works for him.

"For me, it's about teaching him how to bowl now in ODI cricket. The last thing I want to do is take the X Factor away from him and that's what he's got."

Pathirana made an impact on MS Dhoni when he played alongside the former India captain for the Chennai Super Kings in the IPL.

Dhoni even suggested that Pathirana should steer clear of Tests and red-ball cricket to focus primarily on short-format T20.

Dhoni also said that even the youngster's ODI commitments should be limited.

However, Silverwood insisted Sri Lankan cricket would be worse off if Pathirana chose those options.

"I think it would be wrong for us not to have him out there and not let Sri Lankan people see what their young talented cricketers can do out on the cricket field," said the former England fast bowler.

"I get very excited about the young talent coming through, they go out there, spread their wings and fly. And let's see what they can achieve."

There are questions over the future of ODI cricket and even the relevance of the World Cup.

In Thursday's tournament opener between defending champions England and New Zealand at the cavernous 132,000-seater stadium in Ahmedabad, fans trickled in.

Officials claimed there were 40,000 people in the ground in the later stages although many present insisted that figure was optimistic.

"T20 is here to stay and it's a beast of its own now and I don't think you can do anything about that," added Silverwood.

"It's attractive, it's got all the razzmatazz, especially when you look at the IPL and the glamour that goes around that and equally the money that's available for the players.

"But if we and all the teams here can put on a good show and show that this format of a game is great as well, I think it will go a long way to promoting it."
 

The return of India "top-gun" Jasprit Bumrah for the World Cup could not come soon enough for bowling coach Paras Mhambrey as he hailed the paceman's strong start to the hosts' campaign.

India have won all three of their opening games, with the 29-year-old Bumrah taking eight wickets at a meagre average of just over 10 apiece.

But his career has been blighted by injury, with the unorthodox Bumrah sidelined for over a year following back surgery before returning in August.

"You have seen him in the last three games that he has played," Mhambrey told a pre-match press conference on Wednesday ahead of India's match against Bangladesh in Pune.

"What he brings to the table -- he is a world class bowler. He gives you that breakthrough that you require in the power-plays.

"He's well adapted to bowl in the middle overs and he's a top-gun 'death' bowler. I think in that sense, we really missed him."

Mhambrey added India had yet to consider "rotation" as they look to maintain their unbeaten start in a quest to win a third one-day international World Cup title and second on home soil following their 2011 triumph.

And that means the likes of proven performers in seamer Mohammed Shami and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin are set to remain on the sidelines.

Ashwin especially has often found himself omitted across all formats in recent times.

The 37-year-old was also left out of the team that lost to Australia in this year's World Test Championship final at The Oval.

"He (Ashwin) has been a great lad," said Mhambrey. "He understands that, he's a great team guy.

"I've never seen him grumpy; I haven't seen him complaining any time for any of the last few years that he's been with us.

Mhambrey added: "Even after so many years, I think he's there, he wants to do well for the team, he turns up every practice session, goes through the rigorous grinds and he keeps bowling."

Mhambrey said the India bowlers that did play on Thursday would face a "challenging surface".

"It (Pune) is a small ground, comparatively...It is at high altitude. So, I think here, more boundaries will be scored."

Bangladesh have lost their last two matches at the World Cup after starting with a six-wicket win over Afghanistan.

They defeated India by six runs when the teams met in the Asia Cup in Colombo last month, with Mhambrey, highlighting the quality of Bangladesh fast bowler Taskin Ahmed and "champion" all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan

With Afghanistan having already pulled off a shock defeat of champions England and non-Test nation the Netherlands beating South Africa by 38 runs, Mhambrey said: "When you enter a World Cup, every team will pose you a challenge. So, from our perspective, I don't think we'll take anyone (lightly).

"Bangladesh or the Netherlands, I think we want to treat those games as equally important."