Bangladesh Cricket Board's (BCB) newly appointed Anti Corruption Unit (ACU) consultant Alex Marshal said on Tuesday that he is eyeing to make sure Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), country's lone franchise-based T20 tournament, does not give an impression of being vulnerable, reports Cricbuzz.
Marshal had a meeting with BCB president Aminul Islam along with several other board directors at a hotel where he presented his action plan. BCB always had issues with the image of BPL since his inception and were even forced to postpone one season of the tournament after Mohammad Ashraful was charged in a corruption related case.
BCB was forced to form an independent inquiry body amid BPL corruption allegations. The board is expecting to receive the report from the committee before August 20.
Recent media reports suggest that several cricketers are suspected of being involved in wrongdoings in the previous edition of the BPL, while a suspect was even picked by the Bangladesh national cricket team during their tour of Sri Lanka.
Furthermore, it has come to light that some cricketers are currently active in planning to form a nexus for the forthcoming edition of the tournament. There is a recommendation in the report that suggests three franchises - Durbar Rajshahi, Dhaka Capitals and Sylhet Strikers - should not be cleared to take part in the tournament unless proven innocent.
"The reason I'm here is to work with the President and the Board to design an integrity unit which protects the sport from all the different threats. Bangladesh cricket has been at the top table of cricket for a quarter of a century now and this is the right moment to make sure that whatever event is being watched, the fans believe the sport they are seeing on the field and the players, the women and the men who play for Bangladesh, are correctly protected from all the threats out there," Marshall told reporters following his meeting with BCB high-ups.
"The biggest threat in cricket is from corruptors all over the world looking for an opportunity to find a player who they can bribe to underperform. We will make sure that the Bangladesh players, the women and the men who play for the country, are properly protected," he said. "The big threat in cricket is always anywhere in the world to a franchise league that can look vulnerable.
We need to make sure that the BPL does not look like a vulnerable league. The way the event is run, the way that their finances work, the way that team ownership is decided, all those things need to be high level and professional and need to be protected," he said.
"Anywhere in the world, a franchise league that is not seen as highly professional and well protected will at some point become vulnerable to corruptors trying to find their way in. It has happened in many, many countries and there have definitely been issues that have happened within the BPL and we need to make sure that a new integrity unit offers that protection," he said.
Marshall said that he is impressed with the way BCB is cooperating to make sure that the sport is protected while added that they are eyeing to leave a mark. "So we will design an integrity unit and the aim of that is to make sure everyone is educated, they understand what the threat looks like and what they need to look out for, that the team itself has the security and the protection around them and that we make sure the corruptors are chased away," he said.
"We don't want them in Bangladesh, they can be chased out of the country. The integrity unit will send a strong message that this sport will be clean in Bangladesh and the Board and the President are supporting that vision.
"The work has started. So, working with the board and the president to design an integrity unit that gives the right level of protection that is deserved within Bangladesh. I will complete that design over the next three or four weeks.
