Rhodes joins Comilla as BPL preparation gathers pace

Sports Desk: Dhaka, Jan-18,

Former Bangladesh cricket team head coach Steve Rhodes is back in Dhaka not to work with the Bangladesh Cricket Board but for Bangladesh Premier League Twenty20 side Comilla Victorians.

The former English cricketer has been appointed as the advisor by the Victorians for the eighth edition of BPL, set to raise its curtain Friday. Former Tigers coach Rhodes will work alongside renowned coach Mohammad Salauddin for Comilla. Rhodes had joined Bangladesh national team in 2018 but could remain only till the 2019 ODI World Cup. The 57-year old had to depart midway through his contract following the Bangladesh team’s failure in the world event held in England and Wales.

Rhodes during the practice session at BCB academy field in Mirpur Monday was seen in Comilla outfit and having a small reunion with his former charges Mashrafe bin Mortaza, Mahmudullah, Mustafizur Rahman, and others. Meanwhile, the six teams participating in the special edition of BPL– to mark the birth centenary of the Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman – are yet to have the full complement of their squads. The overseas signings are yet to report to the respective teams.

It is understood that the majority of the teams will board their respective team hotels Tuesday. Cricketers who have been part of the just-concluded tour of New Zealand will have the leisure of reporting to their teams following a couple of more days of break. With a surge of Covid-19 cases in the country with each passing day and the new variant Omicron being reported widely, the BCB has placed strict bio-safety measures for the teams.

The teams during the money-spinning tournament will be staying at different hotels but will have similar arrangements of a bio-secured bubble. The players and team officials before boarding the hotel will have to undergo the Covid-19 test.

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