The Cheque Circus

Sylhet Titans’ left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed has sparked a major Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) controversy by claiming that he is yet to receive Tk35 lakh from his franchise, a claim the team’s management has dismissed as a "misunderstanding" over unfulfilled performance bonuses. 

Despite being the highest wicket-taker for the Titans and second-highest overall in the recently-concluded season with 18 scalps, the spinner’s off-field experience has turned into a "circus" of bounced cheques and disputed verbal agreements.

Nasum, who maintained an elite economy rate of 5.97 across 12 matches, told Daily Sun on Sunday that he is being "shown the door" by banks after multiple cheques provided by the franchise failed to clear. The dispute centres on a Tk70 lakh contract Nasum claims was agreed upon when he was signed directly, bypassing the BPL auction.

"I had a contract for Tk70 lakh; they gave Tk28 lakh. I haven't received a single Taka of the remaining 35 lakh from the draft," Nasum stated. 

He alleged that the franchise intentionally misrepresented the payments to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). 

"They told the BCB that they gave me Tk28 lakh from the draft money, but I told the owner, Sami (Mahidul Islam) brother, that was my signing money. He told me, 'Nasum, look, the BCB actually doesn't want to agree, and somehow they found out about your Tk70 lakh contract. You take this now, your money won't be lost'."

The situation reached a breaking point when the franchise allegedly requested the return of security cheques while the full balance remained unpaid. Nasum recalled a phone call from the owner's brother, Sadi: "He said, 'Nasum bhai, the two cheques that were given to you must be returned. Everyone is returning them.' I said, 'Brother, I won’t be able to return the cheques because I haven’t received the full payment yet.' I sent a photo of the cheques on WhatsApp asking if they would clear the full amount today. He said no."

Frustrated by the delay and what he described as a series of shifting deadlines - ranging from late February to 1st March - Nasum eventually sought permission to deposit the cheques. 

"He sent a laughing emoji and told me, 'Good luck,' which I took as permission. I deposited the cheque, and it was returned."

Nasum noted that he has already informed senior figures like Tamim Iqbal and Shahriar Nafees, but chose to go public now as the financial standoff continues.

When contacted, Titans owner Mahidul Islam Sami categorically denied owing Nasum any further funds, asserting that the Tk70 lakh figure was a verbal bonus discussion rather than a documented agreement. 

"The talk wasn't about Tk70 lakh. If he were in the 'A' category and we became champions, we would have given him Tk20 lakh more. The 'A' category was Tk50 lakh and the 'B' category was Tk35 lakh. It was a verbal talk, but not in any agreement. We couldn't come to an agreement on that," Sami said.

Sami further claimed that the lack of paperwork protects the franchise’s position. "He has no paperwork because we didn’t sign anything. I can guarantee you that. The cheques will obviously bounce because we cleared everyone’s payments through the board. Everyone else returned their cheques, but Nasum is holding onto them thinking he will get more money. But brother, that has to be legitimate."

The owner also suggested that Nasum’s categorisation played a role in the financial discrepancy. "When we first spoke in October, he told us he’d be in the 'A' category. We didn’t sign because we found out he was actually in the 'B' category."

However, the Titans’ own coaching staff has contradicted the management’s stance. Senior assistant coach Mahmud Emon, who was pivotal in recruiting Nasum to the Sylhet camp, confirmed the player's claim. 

"That is absolutely true; Nasum is yet to receive Tk35 lakh," Emon admitted. 

"I have spoken to them. It seems an ego problem has cropped up. They’re claiming Nasum is bothering them too much, but I told them, 'He owes a lot of money; just contact him and let him know when you plan to pay it.' That’s the point I’m struggling to get through to them, brother."

Read the full interview online soon.