Bangladesh Cricketers Receive Pay Hike After Strike
Updated - 28 Oct 2019, 11:34 PM
The recent strike by Bangladesh players has started paying off as the cricketers in the country’s main domestic league will see match payments almost double. Last week, 60 cricketers — which included senior players like Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim — had gone on a strike with a 11-point demand.
The players had threatened to not take part in any on-field activity until there demands were accepted. Such was the strike that there were also doubts over Bangladesh’s upcoming tour of India. However, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) quickly brought the matter under control by holding a meeting with the players and accepting their demands.
Consequently, the board has also agreed to conduct fresh elections at the Cricketers Welfare Association of Bangladesh (CWAB) soon. The players had demanded that the existing office-bearers at CWAB should step down. And now the domestic players have seen a hike in their pay.
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Players in the top-tier of the National Cricket League will receive 60,000 taka ($705) instead of 35,000 taka per four-day match, a Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) statement said. Other expenses were also increased as part of the deal. Payments for the second-tier of the competition were increased to 50,000 Taka. Players had demanded at least 100,000 taka per match when they called the strike.
Bangladesh, meanwhile, are all set to visit India now. The tour will get underway next month. The Tigers will play their longest series in India. This will be just the second time that India will host Bangladesh. In 2017, India had hosted their neighbours for the first time for a solitary Test. On the upcoming tour, the visitors will play three T20Is and two Tests.
The T20I series, which will start on November 3, will kickstart the tour. The BCCI have also given the proposal of day-night Test to Bangladesh. If everything goes well then the second Test at the Eden Gardens could become a day-night affair.
