Bangladesh reach Pakistan for T20s amid ‘no security worries’

The Bangladesh Twenty20 squad have reached Lahore to play three matches after months of uncertainty over the tour due to security concerns that led to only a few international cricket series hosted by Pakistan in a decade.

Before leaving Dhaka in a special fight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines on Wednesday night, the Tigers repeatedly said they were not tensed about security, making it clear what was wrong.

When they reached Allama Iqbal International Airport around midnight local time, Pakistan accorded them a warm welcome and heavy security, which Bangladesh Cricket Board President Nazmul Hassan had said would impact the players’ performance.

The tour was confirmed in the last hour after a lot of arguments.

There was, however, no sign of fear on the faces of the cricketers at the airport.

They just want to concentrate on cricket only, not security concerns, coach Russell Domingo and captain Mahmudullah had said.

Speaking to reporters at Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka, Soumya Sarkar reiterated that they have no other concern than the games.

“We are not thinking about anything like that (security),” he said, with a broad smile in his face.

“Worrying about anything will only make us more worried. We will try our level best to stay away from anxiety.”

“Our expectation is to perform well as a team. Everyone in the squad has done well in the BPL. It will be possible to perform well on this tour if we can keep that consistency. I will try to use my full potentials in both batting and bowling,” he said.

“Fear has gone out of our minds with the passage of time. Now we are looking to enjoy good cricket only,” Mohammad Mithun said.

“Nope! No more tension! We will play every match to win. We will try to give our best match by match. I will try to contribute to the team in any situation if I get the chance to bat,” he said.

Shafiul Islam has earned confidence from his visit to Pakistan last month as a member of the Emerging Team.

“No tension at all. The board is sending us after being certain about everything. So, there is nothing to be worried,” he said.

“There was no problem at all about the security,” the pacer said recalling his most recent visit. “It has given me courage. There will obviously be more security for the national team. Personally I had no complaints.”

“My expectation is to do something good for the country,” he said.

Bangladesh will play the T20s at the Gaddafi Stadium on Friday, Saturday and Monday. All the matches will start at 3pm Bangladesh time.

According to the revised schedule, the Tigers will return to Pakistan for the first ICC World Test Championship fixture, to be held from Feb 7-11 in Rawalpindi.

They will tour Pakistan again to play one ODI on Apr 3 and the second Test from Apr 5-9 in Karachi.