Nat'l players to play 4th round

Some national players will be playing in the fourth round matches of the Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL) which will begin today at two venues.

Left-handed opener Imrul Kayes will play for Prime Bank South Zone against BCB North Zone at BKSP to assess his fitness. Imrul had pulled his thigh muscle while fielding during a practice match which forced him to miss the one-off Test match against India in Hyderabad.

“I will play the match to assess my condition,” Imrul told The Daily Star over phone while travelling to BKSP last night.

Soumya Sarker and Mosaddek Hossain will play for South Zone according to captain Abdur Razzak.

“It will be crucial for Imrul because his appearance in the league will give us an idea about his condition. What I know is that Mushfiqur Rahim has been given a rest along with pacers Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman, but others are free to play,” selector Habibul Bashar said yesterday.

“It's nice to see that players like Soumya and Mominul Haque willingly decide to play the four-day match. Mominul's recent statement regarding the importance of playing longer-version domestic cricket is really encouraging for our cricket. There is no platform better for players than the longer-version domestic competition to correct mistakes and boost confidence,” he continued.

South Zone skipper Abdur Razzak was also impressed by the change in attitude of the players towards longer-version domestic cricket.

“It's really encouraging as our players are now interested to play longer-version domestic cricket willingly; which was not case earlier,” said Razzak.

In the other match at Fatullah, Walton Central Zone will take on Islami Bank East Zone.