In a significant step forward, for the first time since the inception of women’s cricket, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has appointed a head of women’s cricket Kazi Habibul Bashar, former national men’s team captain.
Kazi Habibul Bashar was informed about his role as the head of women’s cricket by the women’s wing chairman Nadel Chowdhury on 20th February in a meeting at Dhaka’s Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. Habibul Bashar also met the BCB director and chairman of the women’s wing committee Shafiul Alam Chowdhury and senior women’s team captain Nigar Sultana Joty.
Previously, Kazi and chief selector Minhajul Abedin had been replaced in the selection panel after the board’s recent meeting of directors. Kazi is no stranger to women’s cricket having previously worked as the selector of the women’s national team and has also served as the men’s national team selector from 2016 to 2024.
Despite a challenging start in the 2023 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, where they finished at the bottom of their group in February, Bangladesh swiftly turned the tide. Notably, they held their ground against a formidable Indian team, securing a draw in the ODI series following a T20I series defeat.
Their journey continued with a spirited qualification for the semi-finals of the Asian Games, where they fell short against India. However, they secured the bronze against a strong Pakistan unit. Back on home soil, Bangladesh hosted Pakistan for both T20I and ODI series, emerging triumphant in both encounters with hard-fought 2-1 victories.
Their international campaign of 2023 concluded with a tour of South Africa, where they shared the spoils in the T20I series with a 1-1 draw while facing a defeat in the ODI series. Despite the ups and downs, Bangladesh with their resilience and determination, resulting in a string of firsts have stepped up their cricket. Kazi in an interview revealed the recent success of the women’s team inspired him to join the team.
Quoting Kazi as sourced from Daily Star, “There is a scope to work in this field. Certainly, the recent result of the women’s team inspired me to take up the job. There is a World Cup and there are also domestic cricket so just trying to understand the requirements of my work for the time being… I would like to go to different schools and try to promote women’s cricket.”
To carry forward this momentum of women’s cricket, the BCB is planning a franchise tournament, and Kazi on the same, stated, “If the franchise cricket takes place the focus will increase on women’s cricket. The more matches we play the better because it will create opportunities for everyone.
“Now will see we can have scholarship like the way we had for men’s cricket when we send some cricketers outside the country for better training, so that they can develop and perform and have many such plans like this.”
(Quotes sourced from Daily Star)