The Bangladesh Cricket Board's (BCB) district-level coaching examinations have continued to confound, with top officials admitting that the absence of a clear eligibility criterion for applicants resulted in a vast majority of candidates failing the tests.

The BCB issued a fresh circular on Saturday after only 39 of more than 200 local applicants passed, leaving its recruitment quota unfilled. There are 59 district-level coaching positions, along with two posts for the Dhaka Metropolitan area.

"Whether you hire a physio or a trainer, they have a set qualification, a criteria that you have to pass, a certain level. We didn't have any criteria here," a BCB official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Daily Star.

Initially, eligibility was restricted to applicants with first-class cricket experience or those who had completed the Level One coaching course. However, sources said those requirements were later relaxed because the last Level One coaching course in Bangladesh was held in 2021 and, in the meantime, "many have become coaches."

The examinations were held on July 23 and 24, but a source indicated that the number of successful candidates could fall further.

It was the results of the 40-mark written examination that surprised officials the most. Even straightforward questions, such as asking candidates to prepare a one-day training plan for a cricketer, were poorly answered.

"Just write down how you would conduct the practice. Even that didn't happen," one official said.

The language of the question paper may also have contributed to the poor results. Although candidates were allowed to answer in Bangla, the examination was set in English.

"For some, it [language barrier] definitely was [an issue]. But coaching requires both theoretical and educational knowledge. When someone becomes a district coach, won't they have to write and send a report?" another official remarked.

Several domestic coaches working with the BCB questioned whether candidates should have received training before sitting the examination.

"I feel that many did not understand the questions in English since they have been away from the education system for a while. I feel that they needed to be trained before the exams since now it would be difficult since their frailties were exposed," a local coach said.

The BCB is now preparing to hold another round of examinations to fill the remaining vacancies and appoint district-level coaches to oversee cricket operations in their respective districts.