Sports
9-team UCB Women's Football League begins Saturday
The nine-team UCB Women's Football League 2023-24, Powered by Upay, begins on Saturday (Apr 27) at the Bir Shreshtha Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur here.
Bangladesh Army SC Ltd will play Ataur Rahman Bhuiyan College SC in the opening match, will kick - off at 3:45 pm in Kamalapur.
Two matches will be held on the following day (Sunday) at the same venue.
Farashganj SC will play Uttara Football Club Ltd at 9:30 am while Dhaka Rangers FC will encounter Siraj Smrity Sangshad at 3:45 pm on the day.
AFC council member and Chairperson of the BFF Committee for Women's Football Mahfuza Akter Kiron disclosed the details of the league at a press conference at the BFF House in Motijheel Friday afternoon.
Head of Brand Marketing and Corporate Affairs Division of the league sponsor UCB Bank Ltd Abul Kalam Azad, BFF general secretary Imran Hossain Tushar and the captains & coaches of participating teams were also present on the occasion.
All the nine participating teams will be given Tk 50,000 (fifty thousand) each as participation money.
Besides, the champions will be awarded with Tk 5,00,000 (five lakh) while the runners up team with Tk 3,00,000 (three lakh).
BPL Football: Dhaka Abahani manage 1-0 win over Sheikh Russel KC
Six times champions Dhaka Abahani Limited managed a hard-fought 1-0 goal victory over hosts Sheikh Russel KC in the Bashundhara Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) Football 2023-24 at the Bashundhara Kings Arena here Friday afternoon.
Despite the day' s victory, Dhaka Abahani Limited remained at the 3rd slot in the 10-team league securing 25 points while Sheikh Russel KC remained at the 8th place with 11 points, playing 13 matches each.
Defending champions Bashundhara Kings comfortably dominated the league table securing 31 points while Federation Cup champions Dhaka Mohammedan SC followed the leader distantly with 26 points playing 12 matches each, one match less than Dhaka Abahani Ltd.
After barren first half in the day's match, Brazilian forward Bruno Goncalves Rocha scored the match winning goal for the sky-blue Dhanmondi outfit Abahani in the 74th minute of the match (1-0).
Later, he was adjudged the best player of the match.
In the day's other league match, Fortis Football Club advanced to the 5th slot in the league table beating old Dhaka outfit Rahmatganj MFS by 2-1 goals at the Bir Shreshtha Fl Lt Matiur Rahman Stadium in Munshiganj on Friday.
Local defender Rashedul Islam Rashed put Fortis FC ahead in the 26th minute (1-0) while Gambian striker Pa Omar doubled the Fortis FC margin in the 37th minute (2-0).
Ghana forward Samuel Mensah Konney scored the lone goal for Rahmatganj MFS in the 50th minute from a penalty (2-1)
After the match, Fortis FC moved up to the 5th place securing 16 points while Rahmatganj MFS remained at the 9th slot with 10 points, playing 13 matches each.
Archery World Cup: Bangladesh eliminated from recurve men's team event losing to Mongolia
Bangladesh was eliminated from the recurve men's team event of the Hyundai 2024 Archery World Cup, Stage 1, losing to Mongolia by 5-4 sets in the tiebreaker held in the Chinese city of Shanghai on Thursday.
Bangladesh's recurved men's team, comprising Hakim Ahmed Rubel, Sagar Islam, and Ram Krishna Ghose, settled for a 4-4 draw with Mongolia in the day's elimination round of 12.
Later, both teams took part in the tiebreaker to decide the fate of the match, where Mangolia scored 27 against Bangladesh's 25 to win the match by 5-4 sets.
However, Bangladeshi archers will compete in the recurve men's singles on Friday at the same venue.
Earlier in the qualification round on Wednesday, Bangladesh's men's team finished 16th among the 28 participating teams, scoring 1983 out of 2160.
Shakib Gets Dhaka League Green Light, While Mustafizur Pulled from IPL for National Duty
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has made seemingly contradictory decisions regarding two of its star players.
Mustafizur Rahman has been recalled from the Indian Premier League (IPL) for national duty, while Shakib Al Hasan has been granted permission to prioritize Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League matches during a T20I series of Bangladesh against Zimbabwe.
While justifying the recall of Mustafizur due to workload concerns, BCB's Jalal Yunus, the cricket operation chief, surprisingly stated that “Mustafizur has nothing to learn from IPL.”
The BCB recently announced a 17-member preliminary squad for a training camp in Chattogram, excluding both Shakib and Mustafizur.
Initially, chief selector Gazi Ashraf Hossain indicated Shakib's unavailability, leaving his participation in the Zimbabwe series uncertain.
“We will announce the team on 28th April,” Gazi Ashraf said. “That is when you will find out exactly how many matches Shakib will be available for.”
However, Shakib himself clarified the situation during a public interaction in the USA, where he currently resides.
“I will definitely play in the Zimbabwe series,” Shakib affirmed. He explained that the decision to miss the initial two or three matches was made after discussions with the coach and captain, with the coach suggesting that playing two matches would suffice.
Shakib dismissed the speculation surrounding his prioritization of the Dhaka League as “irrelevant.”
While Shakib remains a crucial member of the Bangladesh team across all formats, his regular participation in national team matches has been a subject of debate over the last few years. This latest decision further fuels the discussion surrounding the balance between club and country commitments for star players.
Olympic legend Usain Bolt named ambassador for T20 Cricket World Cup 2024
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced a surprising yet exciting addition to the upcoming ICC Men's T20 World Cup: Olympic legend Usain Bolt as an ambassador for the tournament, to be held in the West Indies and USA from June 1 to June 29 of this year.
Bolt, known for his electrifying speed and charismatic personality, holds world records in the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m sprints. His achievements on the track have transcended borders and inspired a generation of athletes. Now, he aims to bring that same energy and global appeal to the world of cricket.
“Coming from the Caribbean, where cricket is a part of life, the sport has always held a special place in my heart,” Bolt said, expressing his enthusiasm for the role. He aims to support the growth of cricket, particularly in the United States, which he sees as a crucial step towards the sport's inclusion in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Bolt's role as ambassador will involve promoting the T20 World Cup, starting with a cameo appearance in the official anthem music video alongside renowned artists Sean Paul and Kes. He will also attend matches in the West Indies and participate in fan engagement events in the United States.
ICC CEO Geoff Allardice praised Bolt's involvement, stating, “Usain Bolt is a global icon... His passion for cricket is well known, making him the perfect fit for this role.”
FIFA World Cup Qualifiers: Bangladesh to play Lebanon in Qatar June 11
Bangladesh will play Lebanon in their last Group I away match of their Asian qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup on June 11 at a neutral venue—Al Saad Club Stadium in Doha, Qatar.
The match between the two teams will kick-off at 7: 00 pm local time and 10: 00 pm Bangladesh time.
Two war-torn Arabian nations—Palestine and Lebanon—had to play their home matches in neutral venues due to security reasons.
Before the last group match, Bangladesh will play Australia in their home match on June 6 at the Bashundhara Kings Arena in Dhaka.
On completion of four group matches each, Australia dominated the group table to qualify for the next round with an all-win record, securing a full 12 points, War-torn Palestine is in the distant second, collecting seven points with two wins, one draw, and one defeat.
Lebanon are in the third slot, securing two points with two draws and two defeats, while Bangladesh remained at the bottom with one point from four matches after making a 1-1 draw with Lebanon in their home match in Dhaka.
Earlier, Bangladesh suffered a 0-7 goal defeat against World Cup playing Australia in their away match, drew 1-1 with Arabian nation Lebanon in the home match, suffered a 0-5 defeat against Palestine in their away match in Kuwait, and conceded a shocking 0-1 goal defeat in the dying moment against Palestine in their home match in Dhaka.
What lies ahead for Bangladesh spinners under Mushtaq Ahmed's guidance
Spin bowlers of Bangladesh cricket team are ready to step into the legendary Pakistan leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed era after 2 years of learning from another great coach Rangana Herath. Former Pakistani cricketer Mushtaq Ahmed has been appointed as the spin bowling coach of Bangladesh National Cricket Team by BCB till the ICC T20 World Cup tournamnet this year. As of now, Mushtaq Ahmed will have three assignments primarily during his tenure. First will be the upcoming series against Zimbabwe and the USA. The next will be the T20 World Cup 2024.
Bowling Profile of Pakistani Cricketer Mushtaq Ahmed
Table: An Overview of Mushtaq Ahmed's International Cricket Career As a Bowler
Format
Matches
Innings
Wickets
Best Bowling Figures (innings)
Best Bowling Figures (Match)
Average
Economy
Strike Rate
5-Wicket Haul
10-Wicket Haul
Tests
52
89
185
56-7
106-10
32.97
2.92
67.7
10
3
ODI
144
142
161
36-5
36-5
33.29
4.26
46.8
1
0
.
Mushtaq Ahmed made his debut in the international arena in the ODI series against Sri Lanka on May 23, 1989. He picked up 2 wickets for 33 runs in that game. Later in 19th January 1990, he made his test debut in Adelaide against Australia.
His final ODI game was at Lahore against South Africa on October 3, 2003. He put curtains on his test career on October 28, 2003. His last wicket was Herschelle Gibbs.
Mushtaq Ahmed was a crucial part of Pakistan’s only World Cup triumph in 1992. He was the joint 2nd highest wicket-taker, along with Sir Ian Botham, and only behind Wasim Akram, grabbing 16 wickets in the tournament. He dismissed English opener and skipper Graham Gooch and picked up three wickets in the final.
He also featured for three different county teams. After retiring from international cricket, he delivered his most successful spell in county cricket against Sussex. Moreover, he became the highest wicket-taker in county cricket for five seasons in a row. He also picked 100 wickets in the 2003 season with Sussex. Overall, his first-class career is decorated with 1407 wickets from 309 matches.
Read more: Mushtaq Ahmed arrives in Dhaka to take up assignment with Tigers
Mushtaq Ahmed's Journey As a Bowling Coach
Table: An Overview of Pakistani Cricketer Mushtaq Ahmed's Career as a Coach
Team
Tenure
Role
England National Cricket Team
2008-2014
Spin-Bowling Coach
Pakistan National Cricket Team
2014-2016
Bowling Consultant
West Indies National Cricket team
2018-2019
Spin-Bowling Coach
Pakistan National Cricket Team
2020-2022
Spin-Bowling Coach
.
Mushtaq Ahmed had his longest coaching spell with the England national cricket team right after his retirement as a player. His notable success in this time might be the incorporation of Graeme Swann who is the 2nd highest wicket-taker as a spinner for England in test cricket.
During his tenure as a bowling consultant for Pakistan, players like Imad Wasim and Yasir Shah made their debut in Pakistan Cricket. Yasir Shah is currently the 5th highest-wicket taker and the 2nd highest-wicket-taker as a spinner for Pakistan in test cricket.
His tenure at Windies was prior to the 2019 World Cup. Keemo Paul debuted during his time. However, over-reliance on pacers in that campaign didn’t leave much room for spinners to shine.
Read more: BCB appoints former Pakistan great Mushtaq Ahmed as spin-bowling coach
Recent Performances of Bangladesh Team in Spin Bowling
Mushtaq Ahmed is currently appointed for a brief period of time. Therefore, long-term expectations are out of the cards. However, he can still offer plenty to this team.
Being one of the legendary leg-spinners of the game, the leg-spinners in our team, especially Rishad Hossain, can benefit from his vast experience and knowledge if Rishad can utilize Mushtaq’s guidance properly. Also, other spinners like Mahedi, Mehedi, and Shakib can benefit from him.
More so, Mushtaq can help Shakib hone his traditional and Arm balls particularly. Another interesting factor would be the condition. The T20 World Cup is going to take place in the USA. During his tenure as Windies spin bowling coach, they stayed in the USA for a few matches. So, utilising that experience, Mushtaq Ahmed can help the Bangladeshi spinners to adapt better in that condition.
Read more: BCB Unveils Preliminary Squad for Zimbabwe T20Is, Shakib and Mustafizur Absent
What to Expect from Mushtaq Ahmed as the Spin-bowling Coach of Bangladesh
Traditionally, Bangladesh relied on its spinners for success. However, in the recent years, Bangladesh Cricket took the limelight away from spinners. Even though spinners played a big role in winning the test match against New Zealand in early December 2023 at Sylhet, the recent series against New Zealand raises some genuine concerns in this department.
Spinners took only 52 of the last 100 wickets in tests for Bangladesh. In the Test format Bangladesh often plays with more spinners rather than pacers. In ODI, spinners took only 7 of the last 47 wickets. And, only 7 of the last 31 wickets in T20Is were picked by the Bangladeshi spinners.
If we look back at the World Cup 2023, Bangladesh spinners took only 25 of the 54 wickets while bowling for 189 overs. Their average was 45.36, Strike rate was 43.6 with an economy of 2.77. Bangladesh expects more from their spinners.
Read more: Bangladesh vs Zimbabwe T20 Series 2024: Fixtures, Head-To-Head Records
Final Verdict
Mushtaq Ahmed has a vast ground of knowledge both as a cricketer and as a player. He has the right profile and experience to guide Bangladesh spinners forward. It is now up to the spinners to turn his guidelines into fruition. Only the future will decide how successful Mushtaq Ahmed is as the spin-bowling coach of the Bangladesh team.
Bangladeshi Jinnat wins gold medal in Nelson Mandela Cup International Boxing
Bangladeshi-origin US-based boxer Jinnat Ferdous won the gold medal in the Nelson Mandela Cup International Boxing Competition held in the South African city of Durban on Tuesday.
She clinched the gold medal in the women's 50-kgs weight category competition, beating her Ethiopian opponent in the event's final.
Although Jinnat's emergence as a boxer owes mostly to the time she spent growing up in the United State, she took part in the competition as a Bangladeshi competitor, after Bangladesh Boxing Federation endorsed her entry as Bangladeshi, said General Secretary of Bangladesh Boxing Federation Mazharul Islam Tuhin.
Jinnat also represented Bangladesh in the Hangzhou Asian Games in China held in September last year, but failed to fulfil the expectation of the countrymen.
She was eliminated from the 2nd round of the meet losing to Mongolian rival after getting a bye in the first round
Four Bangladeshi boxers - Jinnat Ferdous and three men Salim Hossain, Abu Talha, and Hossain Ali -- will participate in next month's Olympics qualifying round Boxing Tournament in Thailand.
Bangladeshi boxers have a good chance to qualify for the Paris Olympics directly if they are able to win any medal or to make a good result in the Thailand meet.
Mushtaq Ahmed arrives in Dhaka to take up assignment with Tigers
Former Pakistan leg-spinner and cricketing legend, Mushtaq Ahmed, arrived in Dhaka to assume his new role as the spin bowling coach for the Bangladesh national cricket team.
He visited Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Tuesday and met with the national team players and other members of the coaching staff.
BCB Unveils Preliminary Squad for Zimbabwe T20Is, Shakib and Mustafizur Absent
Upon his first meeting with the national team players, Mushtaq expressed his views on the unique challenges of his new position: “It is very challenging. From a coaching skill point of view, it is totally different to the rest of the world. You have to adopt and be very proactive. You have to understand the cricket here.”
Despite the challenges, Mushtaq conveyed his belief in the Bangladesh team's potential, stating: “I think that the Bangladesh team can pose a strong challenge to any team in the world.”
'Mustafizur has nothing to learn from IPL,' says BCB Cricket Ops chair
His primary objective will be to develop a generation of leg-spinners, addressing a historical gap in Bangladesh cricket. He expressed his enthusiasm for this challenge.
Bangladesh has only one leg-spinner in the current set-up— Rishad Hossain, who impressed with both his bowling and hard-hitting batting ability.
“There is always a legspinner, mystery spinner and chinaman in the nets in Asia. I think that’s where my experience will come through,” he remarked. “You need to have spinners who can get you wickets in the middle overs of white-ball cricket.”
Tamim's international career in limbo as BCB offers no clarity
Reflecting on his past visits to Bangladesh as a player, Mushtaq fondly recalled: “I remember when we won the World Cup in 1992, I was part of the team (that visited Bangladesh) in 1993-94. It was always great to visit Bangladesh. The local people are big fans of Pakistani cricketers. The last time I visited Bangladesh as a player was in 1998.”
BCB Unveils Preliminary Squad for Zimbabwe T20Is, Shakib and Mustafizur Absent
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced a preliminary squad on Tuesday for a practice camp ahead of the five-match T20I series against Zimbabwe, commencing on May 3rd in Chattogram.
Notable absentees from the squad include Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman. Shakib is currently unavailable, while Mustafizur is occupied with his commitments in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
'Mustafizur has nothing to learn from IPL,' says BCB Cricket Ops chair
"Shakib is expected to return home later this month," stated BCB chief selector, Gazi Ashraf Hossain. "We will assess his availability upon his return."
Shakib is currently residing in the USA with his family, and his participation in the series remains uncertain. However, Gazi Ashraf expressed optimism about Shakib joining the squad, at least for the latter part of the series.
Soumya Sarkar has been included in the squad despite concerns surrounding his injury. He will participate in a match-scenario practice camp in Chattogram on April 26th, 27th, and 28th, under the observation of the team's fitness staff.
Tamim's international career in limbo as BCB offers no clarity
"Soumya is not fully fit," explained Gazi Ashraf, "but he is gradually recovering. His presence with the team will allow him to be involved in strategic discussions."
Mohammad Saifuddin makes a comeback after over a year of absence due to injuries. Batsman Parvez Hossain Emon, currently the top scorer in the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League with 585 runs, also earns a recall, along with left-arm spinner Tanvir Islam.
BCB dismisses speculation over Hathurusingha
The final squad for the Zimbabwe series will be announced later this month following the preliminary camp in Chattogram.
Preliminary Squad: Najmul Hossain Shanto, Litton Das, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Tawhid Hridoy, Mahmudullah Riyad, Jaker Ali Anik, Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Parvez Hossain Emon, Tanvir Islam, Afif Hossain, Hasan Mahmud, Mohammad Saifuddin, Soumya Sarkar.