|| CF Correspondent ||

Bangladesh Cricket Board hopes of getting a new long term sponsor has been dampened by the Coronavirus Pandemic as the country is corporate activities is in a standstill.

Akash Dth was the interim sponsor of the Bangladesh Cricket team in the series against Zimbabwe.

BCB are desperately looking to ink a deal with a new national team sponsor as well as appoint a new broadcaster (deal with Gazi TV expires in April 2020) but it seems that the news of potential postponement/cancellation of series against Australia and New Zealand might make it difficult for them at the moment.

Anglo-Dutch consumer giant Unilever is not ready to extend their team sponsor deal which expired in January and, as a result, BCB were looking for new sponsors. The board sought an Expression of Interest on January 2 for a two-year-long team sponsorship with a floor price of fifty five crore taka but could not attract any sponsors before the home series against Zimbabwe. As a result, BCB were forced to take an interim sponsor in Akash, a DTH company owned by Beximco, after they sponsored the women's national cricket team in the last edition of the World Cup.

“We know that it will be difficult to get sponsor and broadcaster at the moment but that is largely because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic more than anything else. We are hopeful to get sponsors soon after everything returns to normalcy,” he said.