| Player: | Habibul Bashar, Mohammad Ashraful |
DateLine: 29th July 2006
Bangladesh cricket was in turmoil after a national team selector was accused of taking commissions from two national players for a deal with a global sportswear company.
The country's cricket board said it would launch a probe after local media accused selector Atahar Ali Khan of taking commissions from the deal with national captain Habibul Bashar and star player Mohammad Ashraful.
"If it is found that the selector took commissions or in any way influenced the deal with the national cricketers, we will take action," cricket board chief executive officer Mahmudur Rahman said.
Khan, whose company is the sole distributor of the global company's shoes and sportswear in the country, said the accusation was baseless. "I did not know anything about the deal," he said.
Cricket has overtaken football as the most popular game in sports-mad Bangladesh after Test status was granted in November 2000.
Many of the national players have endorsement deals with local companies while some are popular faces on television commercials.