Bangladesh Cricket Board interim head Tamim Iqbal said if he joins the board on a long-term basis as its elected president, he would not be willing to stage the Bangladesh Premier League merely for the sake of it.
Hours after the announcement was made officially by the current BCB administration, the board stated that five individuals had been found guilty of breaching the ICC's anti-corruption code. The BPL has remained a recurring concern for the board since its inception in 2012, with player payments continuing to be a major issue and little appearing to improve over the years.
Historically, franchise payments have often become one of the BCB's biggest headaches, and this season was no different. Two franchises - Sylhet Titans and Noakhali Express - took part in the tournament despite reportedly not having formal agreements in place with the board.
"We will not do BPL for the sake of BPL and if necessary, we will not do BPL," Tamim said. "I think BPL is a fantastic product. We can achieve a lot from here. But probably we can't do it. If I think that our thinking or our ideas are not enough to make this successful, there are always ways to get help internationally. There are agencies there who look after these things. If, as individuals, we think that we are not doing a fair job, we will try and get help," he said.
"I personally am a very big believer in BPL. I think BPL should be regular and should be done in the right way, but the problem is selection of the franchise," he said. "That is the biggest challenge, the biggest problem because if your franchise is right, if they are financially solvent and if there are no payment issues, most of the problems are solved. In 14 years, this one topic - payment issues - has come up 14 times. Not getting money, not giving money, this is a major topic.
"Of course, there are many more things to it, but the best way to fix this thing is to get the right franchises and it is not easy, rather difficult, to do. But the position we have taken from our place is our responsibility, it is our job to bring in the best possible franchises. So we will try to do that," he added.
Tamim also said he is open to bringing foreign investors into the BPL, provided they are well reputed. "I am a big believer in that (bringing in foreign investors), but it has to be reputed foreign investors. If we can convince franchises from successful leagues worldwide to come to Bangladesh, that would be a great step forward.
"Of course, first we approach our own domestic corporates and then successful foreign franchise owners from other leagues. When teams like that come in, the value of the league automatically grows," he said. "Bangladesh is actually a very cheap market compared to others. Even running a full franchise here costs significantly less than in other leagues. If done right, I genuinely think this can be profitable for everyone.
"Nowadays some corporate houses are buying franchises in a lot of tournaments," he said.
Tamim added that those responsible for the BPL controversies in the previous edition would be held accountable, pointing out that former BCB president Aminul Islam had allowed a franchise to participate despite reportedly being warned about the owner's background.
"Whether to go legal (against those who were involved in the BPL mishap) is a board decision. Secondly, there is a separate committee for BPL, so it wouldn't be fair for me to say exactly how directly previous board presidents were involved," said Tamim.
"If they were part of those committees during those seasons, they must also be accountable. Why was 3 crore taken instead of a 10-crore bank guarantee? Why was someone given a franchise after being specifically flagged? Bulbul Bhai was the BPL Governing Council chairman for the last BPL. He has to be accountable and answer all of these things," he concluded.
