It was a tumultuous day in Rajshahi that seemed to never end this past Sunday. News broke early in the morning that the cricketers had to switch hotels on match day. Following that, reports surfaced that the players of the Rangpur Riders had expressed their disapproval of playing due to non-payment. However, after posting pictures of empty hands in frustration, the local cricketers did not show up on the field, while the foreign players refused to play. Rajshahi took to the field against Rangpur without any foreign players, leaving the team captain Taskeen Ahmed to address the media after the match.
Ahmed expressed, “Since the start of the day, we’ve seen a lot of drama from all our players. From what I’ve heard, not only did the team management not provide money, but also the foreign players did not even open the door to their rooms. There was a bit of unrest at the beginning with 120 being a challenging wicket today. There were some short runs, but we managed to secure a win in the end.”
He shared a personal anecdote, saying, “I also had a new experience in my life. I had booked a room at Sheraton, then it got changed to Westin, and eventually, all rooms were fully booked at Westin. We had to change hotels. They called us from the board and said to come. At least play. Even the foreign players were told not to come due to payment issues.”
The press conference with Taskeen was filled with both laughter and regret in his voice. It’s no secret that only playing with local cricketers resulted in Rajshahi losing to Rangpur by 2 runs. This loss has left Taskeen searching for answers. He expressed, “Not just me, no one in the team is feeling good either. Everyone hopes to play the BPL peacefully. However, our team faced some problems. Since everyone’s career is at stake, there was only one place to prove themselves, as everyone’s bread and butter is the same. This boosted everyone up. The feeling wasn’t great, but everyone still enjoyed it.”
In the end, despite the challenges faced by the team, the game went on, leaving both players and fans with mixed emotions. The unpredictability of sports once again took center stage, showcasing the resilience and camaraderie of the players as they navigated through a challenging day in the world of cricket.
