BCB sees activity but plans still cloudy

Following a few days of non-activity at the BCB headquarters, yesterday's proceedings drew some attention from the media, especially due to the presence of all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan and head coach Chandika Hathurusingha.

It was both Shakib and Hathurusingha's first visit to Mirpur since the World Cup debacle in India. Coach Hathurusingha, along with team director Khaled Mahmud, went to submit their World Cup reports. Hathurusingha and Shakib had a chat as well.

"He [Hathurusingha] had already handed over his report [on World Cup] via email. Since he and the team are departing for Sylhet today, he was here to discuss the team's plans," a BCB source close to the development told The Daily Star yesterday.

Sources have confirmed that the report was delivered directly to BCB president Nazmul Hassan Papon. There had not been much discussion regarding the World Cup debacle yet and the BCB president's busy schedule due the upcoming national elections may have played a part in it.

The head coach's continuity had been a major talking point following the World Cup and an upcoming board meeting will shed light on developments in that regard. "The decision is left up to the board," one source said. Cricket operations chairman Jalal Yunus, however, said that any individual coach's continuity going forward cannot be commented upon at this moment.

Shakib went to the BCB headquarters for the first time since suffering a finger injury on November 6 during Bangladesh's penultimate World Cup match against Sri Lanka, which ruled him out of the last game against Australia and also the home Test series against New Zealand.

"He (Shakib) came here so that we could change the dressing on his fractured finger," a member of BCB's medical department told The Daily Star.

Having already been ruled out of the Test series at home against New Zealand, Shakib's availability for the upcoming tour of New Zealand remains a doubt. He is slated to undergo an X-ray on his left index finger in three weeks to assess the injury, but with the team scheduled to depart for New Zealand on the tentative date of December 11, team management sources have said that his availability remains doubtful.

Meanwhile, the coaching staff's continuity for the Test series have also been under the spotlight from the World Cup. Pace bowling coach Allan Donald and performance analyst Shrinivas Chandrasekaran have already announced that they would not be continuing. Spin bowling coach Rangana Herath's contract comes to an end on November 30. BCB cricket operations sources claimed that the board would decide soon whether Herath's contract would be renewed while the rest of the coaching staff are expected to arrive before the series. Meanwhile, both New Zealand and Bangladesh teams would hold practice sessions in Sylhet today as preparations begin for the first Test.