BCB seeks relief on imported equipment

The Bangladesh Cricket Board is looking to ease the financial burden of running cricket in the country by seeking relief on taxes and other import-related costs attached to essential cricket equipment.

The issue has become increasingly significant as Bangladesh's domestic and international cricket calendar expands and the demand for match-quality equipment continues to rise.

Cricket balls are a particularly clear example. The BCB is preparing to import 20,123 balls for the 2026-27 season, covering requirements across domestic and international competitions. The procurement involves balls from 10 different brands, reflecting the varying requirements of different formats and levels of cricket.

The scale of that demand comes with a sizeable financial cost.

For the 2026-27 financial year, the BCB is expected to spend around Tk 2.44 crore on customs duty, insurance and freight-forwarding charges associated with imported cricket balls and related procurement.

The board's argument is straightforward: if imported cricket equipment is essential to the development and operation of the sport, reducing the additional cost imposed through duties and related charges could allow more of its resources to be directed towards cricket itself.

The issue also comes at a time when the BCB is trying to make domestic cricket more financially efficient. The board as been examining ways to reduce the cost of organising domestic competitions while improving their commercial return. Officials have estimated that better planning and greater commercialisation could potentially save tens of crores of taka each year.

Import costs therefore form part of a much wider financial question facing Bangladesh cricket-how to spend more on development without allowing operational expenses to rise at the same pace.

For a board that supplies equipment across a large network of domestic competitions and training programmes, even relatively small savings per item can become significant when multiplied across an entire season.

The requirement for imported balls is unlikely to disappear quickly. High-level cricket depends on equipment that meets specific performance and quality standards, while different competitions may require different types of balls.

That leaves the BCB with limited scope to simply cut quantities.

Reducing the cost of bringing those products into the country is therefore a more practical route.

The proposal also fits into a broader push to professionalise Bangladesh's cricket infrastructure. The board has recently invested in ground development, curator education and other areas intended to raise domestic facilities towards international standards.

For those efforts to succeed, however, the financial equation has to work. A reduction in import-related charges would not transform Bangladesh cricket overnight. But it could free resources for areas that have a more direct impact on players and competitions-from grassroots development to domestic tournaments and venue improvement.

The bigger question is whether cricket equipment can be treated differently from ordinary commercial imports when the purchases are being made for the development and administration of a national sport.
For the BCB, the answer appears increasingly important as the volume of cricket continues to grow.

More matches mean more equipment. More equipment means higher costs. The board now wants a larger share of that money to go into cricket-not customs duties.