BCB red-faced over Mushtaq

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) landed itself in another sticky situation after Mushtaq Ahmed, the national team's spin bowling coach in the recent ICC T20 World Cup, joined England Under19s just days after board president Nazmul Hassan Papon said they were working on extending his contract.

'We are ready to extend our contract with Mushtaq. That decision has been made,' the BCB president had said after a board meeting on June 2.

The former Pakistan leg-spinner was appointed by the BCB last April and his contract was set to run till the T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies.

Under his tutelage, Rishad Hossain, Bangladesh's only leg-spinner in the World Cup, ended the tournament as the joint third-highest wicket-taker alongside Afghan skipper Rashid Khan with 14 scalps each.

Mushtaq received a lot of plaudits for helping Rishad's stellar showing and the expectation was that the BCB would try to rope him for a long-term contract.

But now as Mushtaq has already signed a deal with England U19s, which BCB officials claim they already knew about, there is no certainty about when or if Mushtaq can join the Tigers' coaching panel.

"I can't say how long it's [England U19 contract] for. I don't know if he will be available for the Pakistan series," BCB CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury told The Daily Star yesterday.

"Before we communicated with Mushtaq [regarding appointment], he had prior engagements till December which included the England U19 job. So, we said that we will have him till the World Cup and then we will sit and sort it out.

"That discussion [on extension] is still ongoing. If he lets us know how many days he can be available for us till December in combination with his prior engagements, we will lock him down for those days. After December 2024, we will have a long-term agreement with Mushtaq," the BCB CEO explained.

Why the BCB boss would talk about extending Mushtaq's contract in a press conference after knowing the coach already had prior engagements till December is hard to comprehend.

One BCB director, on condition of anonymity, revealed that the board directors in general believe that "extending Mushtaq's contract should be a priority".

However, in what form Mushtaq will be able to work with the Tigers this year, given his other engagements, is a puzzle at the moment.

BCB still wants a long-term contract with him after 2024, but there may be other engagements such as franchise opportunities that Mushtaq may find more lucrative. Quality of work environment would also be important.

For now, BCB claims they are still in talks with Mushtaq but whether they will be able to secure his services, is a question that is still hanging in the air.