However, Mushfiq said that if the clubs have the right to have a say, it is not because of Shathira Zakir JC being a woman, but it may arise from their dissatisfaction that an umpire is debuting in such an important league match .
“It was not about gender, but a question would have also been raised if a debutant male umpire had been selected to officiate in the match,” Mushfiq told Prothom Alo.
Mahmudullah also reiterated Mushfiq's point. Speaking on phone from Chattogram last night, a disappointed Mahmudullah said, “I congratulated him after the match! I praised him for conducting the match so well. Me, Mushfiq, Tamim have been playing cricket for so long. Everyone should understand that we are not like that. I don't know how such things spread. This is detrimental to our cricketers and Bangladesh cricket as a whole.”
Mushfiq's team Prime Bank and Mahmudullah's team Mohammedan also made similar claims. Prime Bank, through a media release yesterday, countered the reports of some media outlets and termed the development as disappointing.
“Prime Bank Cricket Club believes in progress and is respectful towards all genders, castes and religions. There are incidents during matches when players show dissatisfaction over some decisions of the umpires and these are part of the game. The media's claim that Prime Bank was not willing to play under a specific umpire is completely baseless.
