Tamim counting on local heroes

Tamim Iqbal, the icon cricketer of Chittagong Vikings, will lead his home team in the third season of the prestigious T20 tournament in the shape of Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). The team from the port city Chittagong is studded with a number of foreign stars, including Sri Lankan legend Tilkaratne Dilshan, Pakistan’s spin magician Saeed Ajmal and the tainted pacer Mohammad Amir. Still Tamim is counting on the local cricketers and believes the success of his side in this year’s money-spinning BPL will mostly depend on the contributions of the local heroes of Bangladesh.

Tamim faced the reporters on Friday during the practice session of Chittagong Vikings at the BCB Academy Ground when he said, “Local cricketers will be the biggest weapons on our way to achieving success. Overseas players also will be there to provide help in the time of need. But basically the main job will have to be done by our local cricketers. We will be able to touch the ultimate glory only if our local boys step up with full force.”

“We have to play as a total unit. Overall ours is a very good team. But the reflection has to be projected on the performance in the middle. Everyone has to do their respective jobs properly. We will get all our overseas players by today. Then we will have a team meeting. So far our preparation and progress have been quite satisfactory,” added Tamim.

However Tamim was not fully satisfied with the amount of practice they have had together prior to the commencement of the tournament. “It would have been better had we got to practice in a camp for at least 15-20 days. Still we have got opportunity to have a short camp at BKSP and we will take that.”

Tamim was also vocal about the importance of such a domestic T20 tournament like BPL. “I think this is going to be a fantastic tournament. And it will help us a lot. We are not much experienced in T20 cricket. Our players are of course capable of playing in this format but they have lackings as far as their mindset is concerned. This tournament will help to remove that problem. We have Asia Cup ahead, which will be followed by the World T20. Prior to that, we will get the perfect preparation from this tournament.”