Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) newly formed selection panel convener Gazi Ashraf Hossain Lipu said on Tuesday that he is confident about having freedom in work.

The selection panel head further added that if his freedom is curbed, he might have to think otherwise.

“There will be freedom (as the head of the national selection panel) it was discussed with me,” Lipu told reporters during his first interaction with the media at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Tuesday.

“I don’t want to talk about the previous process. Since its team selection, obviously the captain and coach will be involved. The system that is in international cricket, is the system we would like to keep things within that frame,” he added.

“I believe that without freedom there is no enjoyment in working. The path is always open to come and also to leave,” he further added.

The BCB on Monday made wholesale changes in the selection panel as they decided replace long-term chief selector Minhajul Abedin with Lipu while also replaced Minhajul’s long time selection panel member Habibul Bashar with age-group selector Hannan Sarkar with only Abdur Razzak managing to retain his post in the selection committee.

The introduction of Lipu as the selection panel head came as a huge surprise considering he worked in different capacities in the board earlier that included being a member of BCB’s board of directors.

Lipu was quite vocal against the board in the recent past in different media platforms also made it look that he is not too keen to return back in the BCB in any capacity more precisely in the selection panel considering the personality he possess might have to be compromised due to pressure from different quarter while selecting the national cricket team that includes pressure from the BCB high ups that included none other than BCB president Nazmul Hasan among others.

It also raised the question whether Lipu, the first ODI captain of Bangladesh, can select the team with freedom while selecting the national squad.

Lipu added that he does not want to sit with Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusingha, who is known to be a dominating person in the selection table, with any preconceived notion.

“The ball is not yet delivered, so let the ball come and let me play the ball first,” he said when his attention was drawn regarding the strategy he will take while handling Hathurusingha in the selection panel table.

“I haven’t met the coach and when we will meet certainly we will exchange our views like I will know his philosophy while he will also know what philosophy I am carrying because both of us in fact the whole team have one goal and that is to make sure that Bangladesh cricket team perform and get result,” he said   

“I will officially take office after a few days so I don’t want to answer everything. I have to talk to the cricket operations chairman and be clear,” he said adding that he is confident that he can perform with his experience in different sectors of cricket.

“Actually, it’s been a long time since I have been here in BCB’s platform and in a new role. I haven’t worked in this role before but I am aware of it,” he said

“I have worked at age-group for nine years and the maximum players in the national team are from age-group cricket and in the future too. In that light, given that I have successfully conducted tournaments and events at age-group level, it is my responsibility to carry on the selectors’ success,” he concluded.