'She called a junior and slapped her': Veteran Bangladesh pacer makes bold allegations against Nigar Sultana; BCB calls it 'baseless'

Bangladesh women's cricket team pacer Jahanara Alam has reportedly accused captain Nigar Sultana Joty of physically assaulting junior cricketers, an allegation that the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has strongly denied as "baseless". The accusations were made in an interview with Bangladesh daily 'Kaler Kantho' following the team's seventh-place finish at the recent Women's ODI World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.

The 32-year-old Alam, who last played for Bangladesh against Ireland in December, made several allegations against the captain, teammates, coaching staff, and team management.




"This is nothing new. Joty beats up the juniors a lot. Even during this World Cup, the juniors told me, 'No, I won't do this again. Then I'll have to get slapped again.' I heard from some people, 'I got beaten up yesterday.' Even during the Dubai tour, she called a junior into the room and slapped her."

Alam, who has taken 48 wickets in 52 ODIs and 60 in 83 T20Is for Bangladesh, took a two-month break earlier this year following a mental health breakdown during the 2024 T20 World Cup in the UAE.

"Actually, I am not alone, everyone in the Bangladesh team is more or less a victim. Everyone's suffering is different. Here, one or two people get advanced facilities and in some cases, only one person gets them."

She further claimed that there was a systematic effort to remove senior players from the team.

"In 2021, the process of eliminating seniors like me along with a few others from the post-Covid camp began. Then I was made the captain of one of the three teams in the Bangladesh Games. The captains of the other two teams were Jyoti (Nigar Sultana) and Sharmin Sultana. The pressure on seniors started from then on."

The BCB responded to these allegations with a strong denial.

"The BCB categorically and strongly refutes these allegations, which are baseless, fabricated and devoid of any truth. The Board finds it unfortunate that such derogatory and scandalous claims have been made at a time when the Bangladesh Women's Team is showing commendable progress and unity on the international stage."

The board described the remarks as "deliberate and ill-intentioned" and expressed disappointment over the situation.

"It is deeply disappointing that an individual who currently has no involvement or relevance in the plans of Bangladesh cricket has chosen to make such misleading statements in public."

The BCB stated it has "complete trust and confidence in the women's national team's leadership, players and management" and has "found no evidence to support any of the claims made."

Captain Nigar Sultana Joty has not yet responded to these allegations.
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