Bangladesh cricket team [Source: @sumir_pathak/x]The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has initiated a massive action into the nation’s cricketing pathway structure. A series of decisions were announced by the board on Wednesday, February 4, i.e., roughly a couple of weeks after the Bangladesh cricket team was ousted from the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup by the ICC. Several BCB officials had organized a comprehensive discussion on the day at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur. The meeting was helmed by BCB President Aminul Islam. BCB discuss introduction of NCA programme The BCB meeting was attended by several officials like directors Nazmul Abedin, Khaled Mashud, Khan Abdur Razzak and Amzad Hussain. BCB CEO Nizam Uddin Chowdhury and national selection panel chairman Gazi Ashraf Hossain also attended the conference, as helmed by the BCB President. As the BCB and the Bangladesh cricket team enjoy a rare break from international cricket, one of the many agendas discussed at the meeting was introducing a National Cricket Academy programme for Bangladesh’s Under-23 cricketers. In an official statement, the BCB confirmed that the board is aiming to review the existing structure of age-group cricket. The board added, “Particular emphasis was placed on the need to revisit the age-group selection process and to conduct a thorough evaluation of current age verification procedures to ensure transparency and credibility.” BCB to launch eight cricket clubs in Bangladesh The BCB officials also announced their plans of launching as many as eight cricket clubs throughout the country. The clubs will likely be established in prominent Bangladesh cities or unions like Khulna, Barishal, Fatullah, Cox's Bazar, Bogura, Rajshahi, BKSP and Purbachal. As per the discussions, 137 wickets will be prepared in the first phase, with Barishal set to receive the highest share of wickets with 23. The BKSP grounds will receive 19, Khulna to get 15 wickets and Fatullah and Purbachal to be allotted 13 wickets each. The remaining 54 wickets will be distributed accordingly to Cox's Bazar, Rajshahi and Bogura. The wickets and match grounds are expected to be fully prepared by May and June this year.Incentive system, performance tracking in BCB’s agenda The BCB is also planning to introduce an incentive system for cricket coaches in the country. Under this system, the coaches will be incentivised for successfully developing players within their respective domains. One of the other major highlights of the BCB meeting was to establish a “comprehensive player database”. The database in contention will be to cover all participating players in Bangladesh’s domestic tournaments like National Cricket League and others in a bid to support long-term planning and tracking their performances. The major initiatives discussed by the BCB likely constitute a part of a major systematic overhaul for Bangladesh cricket ever since their national team was excluded from the 2026 T20 World Cup. Earlier this month, the BCB also announced a new domestic T20 tournament, titled ODOMMO Bangladesh T20 Cup. The tournament is scheduled to commence from Thursday, February 5 onwards and its primary aim is to keep Bangladesh players match fit and ready amidst their break from international cricket.
