Australia will tour Bangladesh in late August, says BCB chief

Bangladesh Cricket Board President Nazmul Hassan has confirmed that Australia will arrive in Dhaka for two Tests later this year.

Sports Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 28 April 2017, 03:19 PM
Updated : 28 April 2017, 03:32 PM

Hassan said he spoke to Cricket Australia chairman David Peever on his visit to Dubai and that the Australian board agreed to the tour of their own accord.

BCB chief spoke to reporters at his home on Friday on his return from the ICC meetings in Dubai.

“The Australia series has been finalised. They have voluntarily agreed. The Cricket Australia chief spoke to me about this the day before yesterday [Wednesday evening],” Hassan said.

“He will come to see the first Test. This is the first time I talked to them.”

Steven Smith and his men were scheduled to visit in October 2015 but the CA cancelled the tour citing security concerns, though Bangladesh offered maximum safety measures.

Later that year, the board also pulled out of the Under-19 World Cup hosted by Bangladesh. The tournament went ahead without any hiccups.

“The date for the series has been set,” Hassan said. “The second Test will begin on the third day of the Eid-ul-Azha. There was a break of five days. But they don’t want to sit around.

“We spoke among ourselves in the board, and we are fine with arranging the game on the third day of the Eid with holidays on the first two days. We will all be there, the holiday will be cancelled if necessary,” Hassan added.

“Two matches will be played. The date for the first Test will be set so that it ends a day or two ahead of the Eid holidays. We are very happy that they are coming.”

Australia have not toured Bangladesh for a Test series since 2006. Their last trip to the Tigers’ home was in 2011 for a three-match ODI series.