Shakib unavailable for Knight Riders

Shakib Al Hasan, the Bangladesh allrounder, will be unavailable for selection for Kolkata Knight Riders for the Champions League Twenty20. Even though the BCB this week relaxed the ban imposed on Shakib by allowing him to play domestic cricket form September, he still needed a fresh No Objection Certificate (NOC) to play in the CLT20.

The BCB reduced Shakib's six-month suspension by three-and-a-half months, allowing him to be available for selection from September 15. However, the BCB's ban on NOCs, required for Shakib to participate in overseas leagues, remain in place until the end of 2015.

"Clearly for Champions League Twenty20 he is not available to us," Venky Mysore, the Knight Riders' chief executive, said. "Although we have the options it is unfortunate considering he is an important player for us. We just have to respect the BCB's decision."

Shakib was an important contributor to Knight Riders in their title-winning 2014 IPL season, scoring 227 runs at a strike rate of 149.34 and taking 11 wickets with an economy rate of 6.68.

It is understood that technically the existing NOC submitted by Shakib to the franchise is valid till December 2015 but due to the stringent posture taken by the BCB with respect to his recent actions, Shakib would have needed to get a fresh NOC in order to make himself available to play for Knight Riders.

Incidentally, even if it is an extenuating circumstance, the tournament rules do not allow the Knight Riders to seek a replacement for Shakib. It is understood that only players who have featured in the IPL can be called up as replacements.