Robi to hunt for bowling talent again, starting in Sylhet

Mostak, Collymore, Salahuddin and Sohel on judges’ panel

The initiative to conduct a nationwide hunt for pace bowlers was first taken by Arafat Rahman Koko. Under his plan, the Pace Bowler Hunt was launched in 2004 with Grameenphone as the sponsor. The company later expanded the initiative to include spinners alongside pacers. After Robi became the Bangladesh cricket team’s sponsor in 2013, it also joined the pace and spin hunts.

The bowling hunt was suspended in 2018 due to a lack of initiative. After an eight-year hiatus, the programme is set to return, with the Robi Bowler Hunt scheduled to begin in Sylhet on September 27 under the sponsorship of Robi Axiata PLC. Preliminary trials will subsequently be held in the eight divisional cities, with two trials in Dhaka.

In search of the next Rubel Hossain, Ebadat Hossain and Rishad Hossain, this year’s hunt will be open to both boys and girls in two categories, pace and spin. The programme is open to young men and women aged between 16 and 25.

Registration through the My Robi app began on Tuesday and will remain open for 15 days. Preliminary selection will then be held at designated venues in the divisional cities. After their bowling abilities are assessed, those selected at the regional level will undergo a final test in Dhaka.

The judging panel features a group of experienced coaches, including Bangladesh High Performance (HP) team head coach Mohammad Salahuddin, HP pace bowling coach and former West Indies fast bowler Corey Collymore, HP spin bowling coach Sohel Islam and Bangladesh specialist spin bowling coach Mushtaq Ahmed

Robi Axiata PLC unveiled details of the Robi Bowler Hunt at an event on the open ground of the SBNCS on Tuesday.

BCB president Tamim Iqbal, vice-president Fahim Sinha, director Moinuddin Chowdhury Kamru, chief executive officer Nizamuddin Chowdhury Sujon, and Robi managing director and chief executive officer Ziad Shatara spoke at the event. Robi chief commercial officer Shihab Ahmad and head of marketing Showkat Kader Chowdhury also addressed the gathering.

The event was attended by Ebadat, a product of the 2016 Robi Pace Bowler Hunt, national pacer Taskin Ahmed, spinner Taijul Islam, Nayeem Hasan and women’s pacer Nishita Akter Nishi.

Speaking as the chief guest, BCB president Tamim Iqbal said, “Our fast bowlers are performing now, which is why they are being discussed. There was a time when we played with just one nominal pace bowler. We would have him bowl two or four overs and finish his spell. At that time, Robi went against the tide and conducted the Pace Bowler Hunt. I have always felt that Robi is a part of Bangladesh.”

Under its ongoing three-year agreement with the BCB, Robi’s sponsorship as the team sponsor is worth Tk50 crore. The company, which sponsors Bangladesh’s men’s and women’s teams at various levels of international cricket, has now joined hands with the BCB to unearth promising bowlers from remote areas, neighborhoods and local communities.