No Shakib in Rangpur’s GSL campaign

A Rangpur Riders official informed that they won't get the services of Shakib Al Hasan in the upcoming Global Super League (GSL) in Guyana as the premier all-rounder has prior commitments with Bangla Tigers for the Abu Dhabi T10.

The inaugural edition of GSL, scheduled to be held from November 26 to December 7, will feature five franchise-based teams from different countries, and Rangpur are all set to participate in the tournament.

Although the league is sanctioned by Cricket West Indies (CWI), it is fully supported by the government of Guyana and Rangpur will feature in the tournament after having gotten full clearance from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB).

"There were some talks regarding Shakib accompanying us but he will play in the Abu Dhabi T10 at that time," Shanian Taneem, team director of Rangpur, told The Daily Star yesterday.

"He is both the captain and ambassador of Bangla Tigers in the Abu Dhabi T10… I don't think there is any chance of change in plans now," he added.

The Abu Dhabi T10 league is scheduled to run from November 21 to December 2.

These two tournaments will also clash with Bangladesh's upcoming three-format tour of the West Indies, scheduled to start on November 22 in Antigua.

Shakib earlier informed the first Test against South Africa in Mirpur, which the Tigers lost by seven wickets on Thursday, would be his last game in the longest format. However, as it did not happen, it would be interesting to see whether the 37-year-old would be seen in national colours or play the T10 League in the UAE during that time.

Apart from Rangpur, the four other participating teams are Hampshire Hawks (England), Guyana Amazon Warriors (West Indies), Victoria (Australia), and Lahore Qalandars (Pakistan). The tournament's prize money is USD one million.

Shanian also informed that they are going to Guyana with five of their regular players, who are set to play for them in the upcoming Bangladesh Premier League 2025. They have also hired Rony Talukdar, Afif Hossain and Arafat Sunny for the tournament, keeping the visa issue in mind.

"Among our Rangpur players – [Nurul Hasan] Sohan, Mahedi [Hasan], [Mohammad] Saifuddin, Soumya [Sarkar] and Kamrul Islam – are going…Rony, Afif and Arafat Sunny will be going with us as they have USA visa.

"Basically, if there was an option, we could have taken our entire Rangpur Riders squad for the tournament. It would be a very good preparation for us ahead of the BPL. But in order to go to Guyana, everyone needs a valid USA visa or England visa.

"There is a strict rule about the squad which will be 14 members. In the playing XI, there must be six local players and five foreign players. We are looking to have young American and English players on our side. Our head coach Mickey Arthur wants to breed new players from these countries," he said, adding that they want to make their mark in the tournament.

"We are going to represent Bangladesh for the first time in a global franchise tournament. If we can do well there, our local franchises will also be motivated to participate in the global stage," he added.