The Bangladesh Cricket Board will ban rebel players from playing for the country for 10 years if they take part in any unsanctioned tournament, an official said Wednesday.

The decision came at an emergency meeting to formulate a response to the exodus of 13 first-class players to the Indian Cricket League, said Maj. Gen. Sinha Ibn Jamali, president of the BCB, after the meeting.

“The decision will be effective for contracted players and coaches if they participate in any cricket tournament without approval of the ICC or the BCB,” Jamali said.

No problem, says coach

Meanwhile, national coach Jamie Simmonds said the news didn’t come as a complete surprise, and that it wouldn’t harm the long-term interests of the team. “I think everyone knew this was waiting to happen,” he said.

“All I’ll say is we haven’t lost one player who was in the team for the last Test.”