NEW YORK: Former Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan raised almost $24,000 for the country’s coronavirus campaign by auctioning the bat he used to score 606 runs at the World Cup last year.
The winning bidder at the online auction was a New York-based Bangladeshi, said Arif R. Hossain, co-founder of an organisation established to raise funds for charity.
“It was our first initiative. We are really happy by the response,” Hossain said while speaking to an international news agency. He said the money raised would be given to a foundation started by Shakib Al Hasan.
Shakib is considered as one of the best all-rounders in the game. He was banned for two years in October last year for failing to report a match-fixing attempt after he was approached by a bookie. He is due to resume international cricket in October 2020 as one year of his sentence was suspended.
The auction came two days after more than 140 workers at a crab farm owned by Shakib staged a protest to complain about not being paid. They defied a nationwide virus lockdown and chanted slogans before being dispersed by police.
Shakib is revered in Bangladesh for his cricketing prowess. He has denied being involved in the day-to-day operations of the farm but said he would take action.
“My co-owners and working partners failed to inform me properly of what was going on over the last few months,” he said in a statement. He said he paid the employees around 1.9 million taka this week.
Bangladesh has officially reported 4186 coronavirus infections and 127 deaths, but low testing rates have led health experts to believe the real figures are far higher.
