BCB mull 'Bangabandhu BPL' shorn of franchises

There will be no franchises in the next edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). Instead, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) will be owning the teams and they will take care of all the expenses. And this special tournament will be named 'Bangabandhu BPL'.

BCB president Nazmul Hassan made the announcement on Wednesday, saying that the board could not reach a consensus with majority of the franchises, which has led to this decision.

The BCB had a four-year deal with the franchises that has recently expired. The board sat with all of them separately, but the parties culd not end on the same page.

"Some of the franchises demanded a few things that do not go with our policy. Some of them said they do not want to play twice in a year as that will mean heavy spendings. So we will take care of all the expenses," said the BCB president.

"However, if an organisation wants to sponsor a team they can do that. The team names will be the same. The auction will also be there. If a sponsor wants to sign foreign players, they can do that, too," he added.