Bangladesh cricket have pulled a raunchy advert starring new Test star Sabbir Rahman and a model following social media outrage, an industry official said Tuesday.
The advert has been airing on television since August but drew fresh attention this week after Sabbir's superb batting brought the nation agonisingly close to its first-ever victory over England.
The advert shows Sabbir holed up inside his house drinking a nonalcoholic malt beverage called Oscar before being discovered by the model who is dressed as a policewoman.
The model seductively handcuffs the 24-year-old batsman before he responds that drinking Oscar means "a little privacy is indeed needed".
"Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has circulated a directive to stop broadcasting of the ad," a Bangladesh cricket board official said on condition of anonymity.
"It does not fit with the image of Bangladesh cricket," he told AFP.
The advert has drawn sharp reaction online, mostly from those opposed to 34-year-old model Naila Nayem whose previous promotion of breast cancer screenings was seen by some as sexually suggestive.
"Absolute nonsense! I wonder why would Sabbir act in such a sexually tickling ad with Naila!" said Facebook user Rahat Khan.
Bangladeshi cricketers are feted like rockstars by millions in the socially conservative Muslim-majority country and are in huge demand to promote everything from noodles to mobile phones.
Sabbir was thrust into the national spotlight after hitting an unbeaten 64 runs in his first Test, which saw Bangladesh almost pull off an upset against England.
There was no immediate comment from Sabbir or Nayem.
There are no comments.
Saying goodbye is never easy, especially when you are saying farewell to those that have left a positive impression. That was the case earlier this month when Canada hosted Mexico in a friendly at BC Place stadium in Vancouver.
Some 60mn primary-school-age children have no access to formal education
Lekhwiya’s El Arabi scores the equaliser after Tresor is sent off; Tabata, al-Harazi score for QSL champions
The Yemeni Minister of Tourism, Dr Mohamed Abdul Majid Qubati, yesterday expressed hope that the 48-hour ceasefire in Yemen declared by the Command of Coalition Forces on Saturday will be maintained in order to lift the siege imposed on Taz City and ease the entry of humanitarian aid to the besieged
Some 200 teachers from schools across the country attended Qatar Museum’s (QM) first ever Teachers Council at the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) yesterday.
The Supreme Judiciary Council (SJC) of Qatar and the Indonesian Supreme Court (SCI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on judicial co-operation, it was announced yesterday.
Sri Lanka is keen on importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar as part of government policy to shift to clean energy, Minister of City Planning and Water Supply Rauff Hakeem has said.