New Delhi: The Indian Cricket League (ICL) today unveiled six Bangladeshi cricketers, including former captain Habibul Bashar, who will form a new team Dhaka Warriors in the league's second season that begins from October 10.

Announcing the inclusion of Bangladeshi players, Chairman of the ICL Kapil Dev said here, ''We have a total number 13 players from Bangladesh who will form a new team Dhaka Warriors- and will have Balvinder Singh Sandhu as its coach.'' Amongst the six new faces, Bashar, his former deputy Shahriar Nafees, all-rounder Alok Kapali and wicketkeeper Diman Ghosh were present at the launch of the team, while Aftab Ahmed and Farhad Raza couldn't attend the function.

In addition, the ICL named pacemen Manjural Islam, Mohammad Sharif and Tapash Baisya, wicketkeeper Mabud Chowdhury, batsman Mahbubul Karim and left-arm spinners Mohammad Rafique and Mosharraf Hossain for the Bangladeshi side.

Kapil also said the ICL World Championship which will be followed after the League's Twenty20 tournament will now have four teams from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the ICL World.

The former Indian Captain was of the view that the BCCI, which has declared ICL as an unauthorised entity, has put up a very poor example and said the League and its players are being treated as ''untouchables''.

''Is this how you treat such world class players? We have been treated as if we are untouchables,'' he said.

A total of 34 matches will be played this season in four venues which include Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Gurgaon and Panchkula after which the attention would shift to the World series.

While it is being rumoured that money is the driving force behind the Bangladeshi players quitting their national colours, left-handed batsman Shahriar Nafees said it was a decision motivated by many other reasons as well.

"As a cricketer first and last, I would love to play cricket," he said. "I sacrificed 10 years of my life and never thought about money.

"As a professional player, I will get money to play. I thought it was a new dimension of cricket," Nafees said.

Meanwhile, the 36-year-old Bashar said the response that he and his players have got from their own countrymen is very disappointing and discouraging.

''Back home we are being branded as traitors which is absolutely not right. I believe our decisions should taken in the right spirit,'' Bashar said.

The former Bangladeshi Captain further added that the players, who have joined the ICL still hope to play for the country and will be always available to their nation.

He said the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is trying hard to convince all the players to change their decision and has convened a meeting for the issue.

"Today they had called us for a meeting, but we couldn't attend it. We will meet them once we go back in two days," Bashar added.

Kapil, however, lashes out at the BCCI and said the Board is being vindictive towards the unauthorised League.

''It is not right to stop any body's money. I leave it to the discretion of the board. They should have been big hearted. The cricketers deserve their dues.

"They are trying to be vindictive towards us. Only one section of the board is trying to do that. It is just one person who is being vindictive towards us and we all know who he is," Kapil added.

UNI

Tags: indian cricket leaguel, icl, dhaka warriors, kapil dev, habibul bashar, balvinder singh sandhu.