Tigers coming to terms with Al-Amin shock

A pal of gloom replaced happiness as the otherwise cheerful Tigers on Monday tried to get over the unhappy episode of pace bowler Al-Amin Hossain that understandably upset the rhythm of the Bangladesh team in Australia.

Al-Amin went for lunch outside the team hotel yesterday along with left-handed opener Tamim Iqbal and pacer Rubel Hossain few hours before his departure for home. And the way the three walked alongside it was hard to believe that they were battling against an influx of emotion following Bangladesh Cricket Board's decision to withdraw the pacer for breaching the team rules.

Although nobody wished to talk, the mood in the team, it seemed, was that the board "was too harsh compared to the crime".

They also felt hurt at the way the BCB high-ups turned down the senior players' request to heavily fine Al-Amin instead of sending him home for breaking the team rules. Receiving information from various sources the players were convinced that the bowler had no link in match- or spot-fixing allegation and that the ACSU apparently cleared him despite the fact that he was guilty of staying outside team hotel after the 10:00pm deadline.

According to a reliable source, captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and his deputy Shakib Al Hasan tried their best to convince the visiting BCB high-ups; especially Shakib tried as much as possible to change the hearts of the officials as they thought a heavy financial penalty would have been good enough for what Al-Amin had done on the night of February 19.

The question also crept up on the players after the way team manager Khaled Mahmud, also a BCB director, handled the matter.

It would now be a big challenge for Mashrafe to bring that positive vive back in the team ahead of their next challenge against Sri Lanka on February 26 at the MCG.

Mashrafe himself too admitted it.

"It was not expected what happened. We were in a good shape after getting three points from two matches and the team mood was fantastic but this incident had unhinged everything. But fortunately we have enough time in our hand before the next game and hopefully everything will be okay very soon," said a dejected Bangladesh captain.

Reportedly Mashrafe, including Al-Amin, played a big role in the squad and when his attention was drawn about this matter, he said: "We have plan with every player and Al-Amin was no exception. What I thought that Al-Amin's natural in-swinger will be effective against teams like Sri Lanka and England who have a number of left-handed batsmen. Anyway I respect the board's decision and hope Al-Amin will understand that discipline is the most important thing."

However, the most puzzling question that haunted everyone including the players is why a university graduate like Al-Amin stayed outside team hotel after the deadline when he was well aware of the fact that he was already under the ACSU scanner.

"He is a stupid," quipped a discontent teammate.