BPL now to start December 11

Dhaka- The 7th edition of Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) T20 Cricket to be named Bangabandhu BPL marking the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman will now begin on December 11, said Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) President Nazmul Hassan on Wednesday.

“We’ve decided to start the BPL on December 11 instead of December 6. Before that, we’ll arrange an opening ceremony on December 8 and this is final now. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will be present at the opening ceremony,” he told the media at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.

Nazmul further said the players’ draft formalities for the upcoming season of BPL will be held on November 17 at a city hotel.

This year’s BPL will be run by BCB itself. It means there will be no franchise this time as BCB had earlier manifested it to the media. A total of seven teams will participate in this year’s BPL.

Nazmul said the board has already managed the sponsors for the five teams. However, it is yet to reveal the names of the sponsors.

“We’ve finalised sponsors for five teams. We still have two slots for team sponsors. We’re yet to decide whether we’ll involve more sponsors or the board itself runs these two teams. As per the current development, the board is likely to run the remaining teams,” Nazmul further said.

The BCB also recruited four head coaches for four participating teams. But BCB boss said they will reveal the names of the coach only after signing official contracts. UNB