Four BPL Titles—but Salahuddin Says He Doesn’t Miss It at All!

For years, the name Mohammad Salahuddin evoked images of tactical brilliance, trophy celebrations, and a Comilla Victorians squad that played fearless, structured T20 cricket. Four BPL titles under his leadership transformed him into a franchise legend and one of Bangladesh’s most successful T20 thinkers.

But today, the celebrated coach stands in a different arena—one where national responsibility outweighs franchise glory. With the Comilla Victorians absent from the previous BPL season and not featuring this year either, Salahuddin has transitioned into the role of senior assistant coach of the Bangladesh national side. His focus is broader, his responsibilities deeper, and his vision more long-term.

So, does he miss the BPL? When reporters asked him this at Mirpur, his reply was characteristically calm: “I don’t naturally miss anything.” For someone who enjoyed unprecedented success in the league, the answer may come as a surprise, but it reflects a man devoted to the job at hand.

Salahuddin was speaking after a batting-focused practice session involving Bangladesh’s white-ball players. Between 6 and 13 December, the players are undergoing an intensive skills camp—something that seldom fits into Bangladesh’s packed international schedule.

“Our schedule is always busy,” he explained. “We hardly get uninterrupted time to work on skill correction. Improvement has no limit, and camps like these help us address the smaller details.”

The current camp centres on T20 batting—an area in which Bangladesh have quietly improved over the year. Salahuddin outlined the technical corrections being emphasised: striking the ball into gaps rather than fielders’ hands, generating boundaries with reduced risk, utilising pace off the ball, and increasing the frequency of singles to maintain momentum.

In 2024, Bangladesh played 30 T20 internationals and secured 15 wins—marking their joint-highest victory count in a calendar year. “I won’t say we have achieved big success yet,” Salahuddin noted. “But whatever improvement we’ve seen has mostly come from T20 cricket. We had a plan, we played regular series, and we prepared with the World Cup in mind.”

As he discussed, his focus never wavered from national development. Nostalgia for BPL, if any exists, never crossed his expression. His words implied that success should not be tied to one tournament, no matter how glorious the memories are.

His approach reflects a professional evolution—from a championship-winning franchise coach to a national team mentor driving a broader vision for Bangladesh cricket.