Taskin wins Sheikh Kamal National Sports Award
Star national cricket team pacer Taskin Ahmed, nine other sports personalities and two organisations received the prestigious Sheikh Kamal National Sports Award 2023. Prime minister Sheikh Hasina handed over the award to the recipients at a ceremony at Osmani Memorial Auditorium here, reports UNB.
Taskin recently participated in the Zim Afro T10 event in Zimbabwe, where he performed exceptionally well.
He was also invited by a team in the Lankan Premier League (LPL), but the board did not allow him to play, considering his workload for the coming months.
"It's a great honor to win this award," Taskin said. "This is my maiden national award, and it's particularly special to receive it from the hands of the prime minister. It's a moment of pride for me."
Taskin mentioned having a brief conversation with the prime minister during the award ceremony.
"She wished us good luck in the Asia Cup and the World Cup," Taskin said.
Although Taskin was denied a No Objection Certificate (NOC) for the LPL, several other Bangladeshi cricketers, including Shakib Al Hasan, Towhid Hridoy, and Shoriful Islam, are participating in the league.
"If you perform well in any event, it boosts your confidence," Taskin said. "T10 is a tough format, so having a good memory of this league will help me perform better in other formats in the future."
The right-arm pacer is delighted that many of his teammates are now playing in foreign leagues, and he believes it's a positive sign for the cricketers of Bangladesh.
BSS adds, the ministry of youth and sports organised the ceremony on the occasion of the 74th birth anniversary of Shaheed Captain Sheikh Kamal, a military officer as well.
The prime minister handed over the Sheikh Kamal (NSC) Award-2023 to 10 sports personalities and two organizations in recognition of their outstanding contribution to sports.
Abdus Sadek, the legendary hockey player and the first captain of the Bangladesh national hockey team, was given the lifetime achievement award.
Women's football team captain Sabina Khatun, cricketer Taskin Ahmed and South Asian gold medalist weightlifter Ziarul Islam got the award in the sportsman category.
Table tennis player Muhtasin Ahmed Hridoy and hockey player Amirul Islam received the emerging athlete award, while grassroots hockey organiser Fazlul Islam and Kalsindur Govt. School and College's principal Mala Rani Sarker were given the awards in sports organiser category.
Khandakar Tarek Md Nurullah received the sports journalist award, while Bangladesh Archery Federation received the sports association/federation/organisation award, and Bangladesh Association of Banks (BAB) got the sports sponsor award.
On behalf of BAB, Md Nazrul Islam Mazumder and Chowdhury Nafeez Sarafat received the award.
In addition, the ministry, for the first time, included the sports commentator category in the Sheikh Kamal NSC award. Former national cricketer and cricket commentator Atahar Ali Khan received the sports commentator award.
Each of the awardees received Taka one lakh, a crest, and a certificate.