BCB makes it mandatory for BPL teams to field a 140-plus quick and a legspinner

Each of the seven Bangladesh Premier League teams for the upcoming season of the T20 tournament must have an overseas quick bowler who bowls above 140kph and a legspinner, who has to bowl four overs in each game, the Bangladesh Cricket Board director Mahbubul Anam has announced.

But he didn't provide any clarity on how much the domestic cricketers would be paid. Khaled Mahmud, another BCB director, had recently said that the board, which has taken over the running of the BPL from the franchises, would try to match what the players receive as match fees for T20Is, but there has been no official confirmation of that. It's important to remember that if a top domestic player takes part in all the BPL matches, the amount he makes will still be well short of what he would have made in the BPL previously.

"The players shouldn't be worried about money," Anam said. "We are holding this tournament by keeping them in mind. Salary isn't very important, but it will definitely be respectable."

Each team must also have an overseas coach, physiotherapist and trainer, while local coaches can only work as assistants to the head coaches. Anam also said that each team must appoint a BCB director as the team director.

ESPNcricinfo understands that the order about the 140kph quick bowler and legspinner has come from the Bangladesh team management, which, Anam said, has been concerned about the side's ability against the two kinds of bowlers when playing internationally.

"BCB wants this BPL to be about improving Bangladesh's cricketers in T20s, so we want to make sure that our batsmen and bowlers get enough opportunities [against quicks and legspinners], something that was not possible when it was a franchise-based BPL," Anam said.

The BCB has reportedly received 390-plus registrations from players to be included in the draft, and there have also been requests put in by several coaches. With the BCB stipulating a sponsor for each team, they can bring overseas players from outside the draft too. Paying foreigners high salaries, however, might not sit well with domestic players, especially as the BCB's message for the 2019-20 BPL is to be fully focused on the local talent.

As reported by ESPNcricinfo, the next edition of the BPL will not be a franchise-run affair and, instead, be owned by the BCB following a clash between the board and six of the seven existing team owners, Dhaka Dynamites the only exception.