Misbah discontent with BPL

The Pakistani captain expressed his displeasure with the way things were run in the BPL

Out of the many Pakistani players who participated in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), many are unhappy and discontent after being sidelined by the owners and the management. Misbah-ul-Haq who played for the Rangpur Riders has expressed his disappointment after not being preferred over other foreign players.

Misbah was not in the first team squad for seven matches and he expressed this after the team’s knockout match on Sunday. Misbah said, “I can't say much on this, but I guess the team owners and coaches know what is required. But it is not easy sitting on the bench for so long.”

Misbah was clearly unhappy after being excluded in one of the most important knockout matches and his elimination came as a surprise to the Pakistan critics. Misbah was only one of the few other Pakistani cricketers like Wahab Riaz, Kamran Akmal, Umar Akmal, and Saeed Ajmal who were unhappy after receiving the same kind of treatment.

Kamran Akmal after being omitted from the team after 2 matches, “I had made it clear to my franchise owners and management that I wanted to open in the BPL but after just two matches I didn't get any proper response, I didn't go there only for the money I went there as I thought the BPL would allow me to further remind the selectors I am doing well,"

Fast bowler Wahab Riaz made a decision to get back to his country midway through the BPL, considering that as a better option rather than being benched so often, he said, “Obviously it is not easy to be ignored like this for majority matches. It has been tough on Misbah, but he has handled himself well.”

Out of the 17 Pakistani players who were a part of the Bangladesh Premier League with the likes of Shoaib Malik, Ahmed Shahzad, Sohail Tanvir and Hafeez, only Mohammad Aamir and Sami enjoyed all the matches for Chittagong Vikings and Barisal Bulls respectively.

Sohail Khan got only one match to feature in with spinner Saeed Ajmal getting a chance to play only 2 matches. Afridi had the chance to lead Sylhet after joining in late, but he also made sure that Tanvir played as many games as possible. The team didn’t qualify for the knockouts stage.

Pakistani players have not only had a problem with being selected in the first team but also had issues about payments from the BPL Franchises.