BCCI's move excites Bengal's ICL cricketers

KOLKATA: Bengal suffered the most when the ���rebel��� ICL sprang to life in April 2007, losing seven players including four regulars (then skipper Deep Dasgupta, Abhishek Jhunjhunwala, Subhamoy Das and Rohan Gavaskar), besides left-arm spinner Shib Sagar Singh, left-arm pacer Eklakh Ahmed and wicketkeeper Subhajit Paul.
The state team felt the pinch straightaway, getting relegated from the Ranji Trophy Elite group in the 2007-08 season.
With BCCI announcing that the BCCI is ready to have ICL ���rebels��� back in the fold, it provides a new lease of life for these players and fresh options to the Cricket Association of Bengal.
"It���s definitely a welcome move by the BCCI. I will be returning to India in the first week of May and then discuss the issue with the ICL bosses. There are a lot of things which need to be addressed but I���ll definitely be considering the option (of playing for Bengal again)," Jhunjhunwala told TOI over phone from his London residence.
Senior pros Deep and Subhamoy want to wait and weigh the options carefully before taking a call. "First we need to speak to ICL and discuss at length the contractual issues before taking a call on this matter," Subhamoy said. CAB joint secretary Arun Mitra and chief selectors Sambaran Banerjee were clear in the thought that the likes of Abhishek, Deep and Subhamoy would be welcomed back at the earliest, if they were willing to leave the ICL fold.