Habibul unsure about applying for post of national selection panel head

Habibul Bashar, the front runner to replace Gazi Ashraf Hossain as the new head of the national selection panel, said on Sunday that he is unsure about applying for the post. This comes after the Bangladesh Cricket Board decided to advertise for the selection panel position for the first time in their history.

Ashraf decided to step down following his two-year tenure, and it was expected that Habibul would take over the role. However, the BCB has decided to advertise for two posts on the national selection panel and asked interested candidates to submit their CVs by March 8.

Habibul served as a selector for eight years under chief selectors Faruque Ahmed and Minhajul Abedin. His tenure ended when the panel was restructured in February 2024. The former captain is now apparently unsure about submitting his CV, as he is currently working with the BCB in game development.

"I am not sure whether I will send my CV or not," Bashar told Cricbuzz. "I am currently working with BCB, so in that case, why do I have to apply is something I need to understand before taking a final call in this regard," he added.

Nazmul Abedin, BCB cricket operations chairman, stated that advertising for the post will help ensure fairness in selecting candidates. "The reason is that, apart from those we have in mind, there may be others who are qualified and who deserve an opportunity. We want to judge whether they have the ability. That makes the whole process a bit fairer," said Nazmul.

"Ultimately, we will take those whom we consider the most qualified. But here there will be more than one opportunity, and if someone can prove that they are also eligible, that is one aspect. Another thing is that we may take two people this time, but we will also come to know who else is in our system and who are interested," he explained.

"In the future, we will need more selectors. If we think regionally, or at age-group level, or for the women's side, we will need more selectors," he added.

Regarding preferences for the head of the selection panel, Nazmul said, "That (former national captain) will definitely be a preference, but considering everything together—whoever has that leadership quality, that experience, that knowledge—definitely he will be preferred."

"But a captain usually has those qualities, which is why he becomes captain, so there will certainly be a preference. We have Shanto (Hasibul Hossain) and once Lipu leaves, there will be one remaining, and then two more will be added," he noted.

Recently, the BCB extended Ashraf's tenure by one month to find a suitable replacement.