The sixth edition of the Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL), the country's second first-class competition, will start from January 5, informed Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury yesterday.
However, the Cricket Committee of Dhaka Metropolis chairman Kazi Inam Ahmed had earlier informed that the Dhaka Premier League is set to start from January 20.
"So far, the BCL is scheduled to start from January 5 while the Dhaka Premier League is also expected to start from January 20, but the decision regarding the DPL will be taken later," Nizamuddin told the Daily Star yesterday.
It was learned that the BCL will be broken up into two legs to accommodate the DPL. The second leg of the first-class competition - where the best players from the recently concluded National Cricket League will be formed into four zonal teams -- will be played after the conclusion of the DPL.
"We have already completed 80 per cent of the four teams," said chief selector Minhajul Abedin yesterday. "We want the performers of the NCL along with the HP [High Performance] players in the teams and are also willing to accommodate national players who will play the Test series," he added.
Among the four teams, two of the franchises have objected to the start of the BCL from January 5 during the meeting with the tournament committee yesterday, citing scant time for preparation.
