The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has decided to allow its U-19 players to feature in the upcoming Bangladesh Premier League T20 after several franchises expressed their interest to sign few cricketers from the current crop for the 11th edition of the meet, scheduled to start on December 30.

"We have already issued clearance for them. We have decided to allow them in the senior-level games. We will also allow them to play in the DPL as well. There are eight to nine cricketers who will play in the DPL," BCB's game development manager AEM Kawser told The Daily Star yesterday.

"The maturity and the courage of the players will definitely improve while playing in such a tournament. I think they can learn a lot from the senior players," he added.

Five U-19 cricketers including skipper Azizul Hakim Tamim and pacer Iqbal Hossain Emon, who were part the Asia Cup winning squad in the UAE, featured in the just-concluded National Cricket League T20 held in Sylhet, showcasing notable performances that caught the eyes of the franchises.

Azizul, who represented Khulna Division, finished with 237 runs in nine matches at a strike rate of 136.99 with two fifties, becoming the fifth-highest run-getter, while another U-19 batsman, Zawad Abrar, who played for Dhaka Division, scored 105 runs in three matches at a strike rate of 141.89 with one half-century.

Pacers Maruf Mridha and Emon took five wickets each for Dhaka Metro and Dhaka Division respectively while pacer Al Fahad took one wicket in the lone game he played for Sylhet Division.

It was learnt that since many of these cricketers weren't even listed in BPL players' draft, some franchises asked for them through e-mails to the BCB.

Pacer Maruf, who won't be eligible for the next U-19 World Cup in 2026, was already picked from the draft by Chittagong Kings while some other franchises like Rangpur Riders are in serious attempt to get the services of Azizul.

Meanwhile, few other franchises have also shown interest to include Emon and Zawad in their BPL squads.

Kawser informed that they have rescheduled the U-19 side's upcoming tour of Sri Lanka, further adding that they have already drawn a programme for the rest of the U-19 cricketers who won't feature in the BPL.

"We have actually deferred the U-19 team's tour of Sri Lanka [scheduled in January]. We may play the series before the next Asia Cup, which will be held in December next year," he said.

"From January 6, we have a three-week fitness and skill camp. The Mirpur stadium and the athletics track of Bangabandhu National Stadium will be used for the fitness camp. Fitness test, running session will be conducted there. The skill camp will be held in Khulna which will start from January 10.

"They will train there and also play some intra-squad practice games. Those who will not be playing in the BPL, will be in the camp," he said, adding that some players who performed well during the U-17s' recent tour of Sri Lanka are likely to be called up for this camp.