Yes rubbish decision.
Fans don't care about quality that much. Fans want entertainment and you will be entertained more if you see a local player taking control or if some quality foreign players are on show.
No offense to Fahim Ashraf. Say he plays plenty of matches but no one will go to the stadium to watch him play. Malik Rashid Khan Mathews now that's a different thing.
Reality is a lot of mediocre international cricketers play in BPL and I am sure a lot of our local players aren't any worse than them.
Yes and no.
With such leagues, organisers need to balance entertainment/drawing crowds with developing local domestic talent.
On the one hand, you don't want to be too restrictive on international players playing as otherwise you end up with a glorified domestic league. Plus, local players will miss out on the experience of playing/learning from international players. Not to mention the fact that a larger international presence is more likely to attract (i) local crowds and (ii) international interest. In other words if money and buzz are the primary aims, then the more international cricketers playing the better. This is clearly what the BCB had in mind by increasing the foreign players cap up to 5.
On the other hand, if the league's priority is to develop local talent the organisers should be careful on how many international players are permitted in each side. My own preference is for such leagues to develop local talent, which is why I expressed my disappointment at the BPL's increase. After all, by increasing the number of internationals playing by definition you reduce the number of opportunities for local upcoming players.
It's a difficult balance to strike. Crucially, in the BPL the new rule means each side can field
up to five overseas players in their XI (minimum three). The decision is left in the hands of the franchises, which means your fears about mediocre international cricketers playing ahead of equally talented local players are unlikely to materialise. Had they made playing five foreign players mandatory, then that certainly would have been a backwards step.
As an aside, I think Fahim Ashraf caught the attention of Bangladeshi fans after his match winning knock against them in the warm up game. I would actually say he would be more of a draw than Matthews. In any case, Fahim will play on merit- he will show himself to be a very useful addition to any t20 side.
