'BCB open to talks with cricketers'

The chief executive officer of Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Wednesday said they are open to talks with cricketers to reach a consensus, reports UNB.

“Their demands are not tough to resolve. It’s just a matter of time. But we have to talk to the cricketers to come up with a solution,” Nizam Uddin told the media at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.

He said he had spoken with Tamim Iqbal. “He said the cricketers are discussing the matter, and we hope they will sit with us for talks,” UNB quotes Nizam as saying.

“We got an update suggesting that they’ll talk to the media today. After that, they could sit with us. The board is open to talk. The board president will also talk to them if it is required,” he said.

Top Bangladeshi cricketers came up with 11-point demand including increasing salary, better contract and open transfer on 21 October. At the same time, they announced to abstain from cricket until the demands are met.

The next day, BCB president Namzul Hassan dubbed the cricketers’ stance an attempt to tarnish the image of Bangladesh cricket. “We’ll definitely find out who are behind it,” Namzul Hassan told the media.