England’s tour of Bangladesh which was supposed to be held in September this year got postponed due to a clash in timing with the second phase of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
This much-anticipated tour would have been the first bilateral series between the two nations almost after five years. Moreover, right before the T20 World Cup, it would have been the best preparation for the Tigers moving forward.
Earlier, the Managing Director of the England Cricket Board (ECB), Ashley Giles, announced that all their players will be available for national duties, irrespective of the start of the second phase of the IPL.
Soon afterwards, the decision was reversed by postponing the series until March 2023. As such, according to reports, IPL-bound players can join their respective teams in the United Arab Emirates.
Although the ECB is calling this postponement a mutual agreement between the two boards, various sources suggest The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has influenced this decision. Reportedly, BCCI convinced ECB into allowing their players to participate in the IPL.
The sheer power of BCCI over the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the other cricketing boards has affected the integrity of the game. In this case, if the English players didn’t attend the IPL, it would have been a big loss for the franchise league, as a lot would have been at stake.
In recent times, the IPL has become a global franchise league. To light up the event, and gain more viewership, their prime agenda has been to acquire more international cricketers.
The English players being fairly dominant in this format, have got more priority compared to the others. Their style of play and ability to hit big sixes keep the crowd entertained, which is essential for glowing up the tournament.
Furthermore, the majority of the teams have English cricketers occupying their foreign players’ quota, which means their absence would have led to severe constraints in that department.
The unavailability of these players would very certainly have rendered the teams weaker, forcing them to rely on local choices or cricketers from smaller cricketing nations such as Afghanistan or Bangladesh. Either way, the glamour of the league would have been reduced, affecting the commercial success.
The BCCI's abuse of power and desire to monopolise the sport is nothing new. It was not long ago when they tried to stop the inaugural edition of the Kashmir Premier League (KPL) from happening. They threatened to ban any cricketers joining the KPL.
As for the ban, former Proteas batsman Herschelle Gibbs tweeted, “Completely unnecessary of the @BCCI to bring their political agenda with Pakistan into the equation and trying to prevent me playing in the @kpl_20. Also threatening me by saying they won’t allow me entry into India for any cricket related work. Ludicrous.”
This tweet from the legend himself depicts how the cricketing world is forced to bend its knees in front of the BCCI. Besides, if this despotism continues, then it’s hard to see cricket growing as a global sport and reach heights like football.
According to the ECB, the decision to postpone the series and let their players play in the IPL has been taken, analysing the benefits they are gaining from it. IPL is set to be hosted in the United Arab Emirates, where later in the year the T20 World Cup is about to take place. Hence, right before the World Cup, the English cricketers will have the best of preparations in regards to conditions.
On the other hand, when it comes to Bangladesh, only Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman are the players who will feature in the second phase of the IPL. Ideally, the series against England could have been the perfect opportunity for the Tigers to prepare for the upcoming World Cup.
Now, for the Bangladesh cricket team, it all depends on the conditioning camp that is planned to take place in Oman, to cover up for the England series and make themselves ready before the mega event.
