Australia tour of Bangladesh very much on, hints BCB Chief

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief Nazmul Hassan has hinted that the Australian team is almost certain to tour Bangladesh later this year. He spoke about the same after the conclusion of the recent ICC meeting. He noted that the series has been finalized. If the tour indeed goes underway this year, this would be the first tour of the Australian side to Bangladesh since 2006.

Hassan quoted that the series is likely to go as per the schedule. Speaking about the possible reasons why he thinks so, the BCB chief commented that during the ICC meeting, the CA President expressed his desire to him about watching the Test in Bangladesh. He further conceded that it was the first time that his counterpart from the Australian board

“Australia series has been finalized. I am saying it because the President of their board told me on the last day of the meeting – Wednesday – that he and his wife are coming to watch the first Test. That was the first time he said anything about the series during the meeting,” the BCB Chief quoted.

If the tour gets underway, it would be a big series for the Bangladesh cricket. Ever since getting their Test status back in 2000, they have only featured in 100 Tests. They recently played their 100th Test against Sri Lanka at Colombo. It is not often that the two teams face off one another. In the last decade, Australia and Bangladesh have only played two bilateral series.

Earlier in 2015, the Australian team was expected to tour Bangladesh for a 2-match Test series. At the last moment, the Australian team opted out of the series due to security reasons. The Aussie officials had also withdrawn their name from the ICC U19 World Cup and the Australian colts did not feature in the ICC U19 World Cup 2016.