BCB issues show cause notice to Nazmul Islam but Bangladesh players firm on boycott

The Bangladesh Cricket Board has issued a show cause notice to its director M Nazmul Islam over his "objectionable comments" in public against the country's cricketers on Wednesday.

The notice came a couple of hours before the scheduled start of the BPL matches for the day, though the players' body CWAB has called for a nationwide boycott on all forms of cricket unless Islam tenders his resignation.

The four first-division matches in the Dhaka Cricket League scheduled for the day didn't start on Thursday morning, which caused serious concern in the BCB. ESPNcricinfo has learned that the Chattogram Royals and Noakhali Express players, who were supposed to play the first BPL match on Thursday, are sticking to the boycott.

"The board has already initiated formal disciplinary proceedings against the board member concerned," the BCB statement read. "A show cause letter has been issued, and the individual has been instructed to submit a written response within 48 hours. The matter will be dealt with through due process and appropriate action will be taken based on the outcome of the proceedings."

ESPNcricinfo understands that some board directors contacted the CWAB president Mohammad Mithun late on Wednesday night, offering that they would make Nazmul stand down from his role as the finance committee chairman. But Mithun said the cricketers' call for the boycott remained in place.

The toss of the first BPL match on Thursday is at 12.30 pm local time. Once the start time for the match has passed, the CWAB leaders are supposed to hold a press conference, where they will present the BCB with their demands, including the resignation of the director.