Tamim Iqbal
‘Indian agent’ slur: BCB official Nazmul’s remark on Tamim Iqbal sparks massive row ahead of T20 World Cup
Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) finance committee chairman M Nazmul Islam has triggered a controversy after he called the nation's cricket icon Tamim Iqbal an 'Indian agent'.
Nazmul shared a recent comment from Tamim, in which the former opener urged the BCB to carefully consider all aspects before taking any decision regarding Bangladesh’s participation in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, noting that a major portion of the board’s revenue comes from the ICC, reported The Daily Star.
“A comment made by BCB director M Nazmul Islam regarding former national captain Tamim Iqbal has come to the attention of the Cricketers’ Welfare Association of Bangladesh (CWAB). We are stunned, shocked and outraged by it,” CWAB said in a statement as quoted by the newspaper.
“Such a remark by a board official about the most successful opener in Bangladesh’s history, who represented the country for 16 years, is utterly condemnable. Not only because it concerns a player like Tamim, but such comments about any cricketer of the country are unacceptable and insulting to the entire cricketing community.”
In his social media page, he said the country had now “witnessed the emergence of another proven Indian agent.”
Meanwhile, the Cricketers’ Welfare Association of Bangladesh (CWAB) has written to the BCB president and demanded an apology from Islam and urged the board to take action against him.
Tamim’s brother and former Bangladesh batter Nafees Iqbal slammed Nazmul for his comment and called it 'disrespectful'.
Bangladesh pacer Taskin Ahmed said the cricket official's remarks did not align with the interests of the country.
"We believe that such remarks directed at a former national cricketer are not conducive to the best interests of Bangladeshi cricket. We hope that the relevant parties will consider this matter seriously and adopt a more responsible stance in the future," Ahmed said.
After the Indian Premier League squad Kolkata Knight Riders removed pacer Mustafizur Rahman from the team, the Bangladesh Cricket Board shot a letter to the ICC where it cited security concerns over travelling to India for the upcoming T20 World Cup. The board demanded to shift its matches to Sri Lanka.
Bangladesh is scheduled to play all four matches in India.
The tournament is scheduled to begin on February 7.
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