Saleh and Sajidul not handed contracts

Middle-order batsman Rajin Saleh and medium-pacer Sajidul Islam have missed out on a list of 17 contracted players named by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB). The BCB offered contracts to six players for the first time - Mahmudullah, Nazmul Hossain, Naeem Islam, Mahbubul Alam, Imrul Kayes and Rubel Hossain.

The BCB had 21 players on its payroll last year but seven terminated their contracts to join the ICL. Mohammad Rafique, the veteral spinner, had earlier retired. The BCB announced a 30% pay increase for players last month in a bid to stop further defections to the ICL.

This is the second year in a row Saleh, 25, has been overlooked for a contract. He was one of five players whose contracts had been reduced from one year to six months in December 2007. Not a regular feature in the squad since July 2007, he was called up for the series against New Zealand last October where he managed just 26 runs in the two Tests at 8.66.

Sajidul, a 21-year-old left-arm medium-pacer, played two Tests against New Zealand in January 2008. He has not featured in Bangladesh's plans since.

The 11 already contracted players to have been given new ones are the Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful, Mashrafe Mortaza, Shahadat Hossain, Abdur Razzak, Shakib-Al-Hasan, Syed Rasel, Mehrab Hossain, Mushfiqur Rahim, Tamim Iqbal, Junaid Siddique and Raqibul Hasan.