Bangladesh tour of West Indies might be postponed due to World Cup Qualifiers

Bangladesh were scheduled to travel to the West Indies for a series in February next year but the tour is said to be postponed until July instead. Talks of the postponement of the series emerged due to the likelihood of West Indies appearing for the World Cup Qualifiers which is scheduled for March 2018.

West Indies all but certain to appear in qualifiers

West Indies are currently ranked No. 9 in the ICC ODI team rankings and it will take a miracle for them to push into the top 8 teams before the cut-off date for direct World Cup qualification. According to ESPNcricinfo, the respective boards of both countries have already tentatively agreed to push the proposed series to July. If West Indies appear for the qualifying tournament, they will host Sri Lanka for a series in June followed by Bangladesh before the 6th edition of the CPL will mark an end to the cricket season in the Caribbean.

Respite for Bangladesh

This move will probably come as a respite for Bangladesh, who have a packed schedule for the first half of 2018. If the series went ahead as per the schedule, Bangladesh would have to rush to the Caribbean after hosting Sri Lanka. They would have to travel straight to Sri Lanka for an away tour if they went ahead with the West Indies series.

Bangladesh have a jam packed schedule for the rest of 2017. After playing the 2-Test series against the visiting Australian side, they are bound to head for a full series in South Africa which will last till October 29, just three days prior to the start of the BPL season. Soon after the BPL, which will finish in the second week of December, they are scheduled to host Sri Lanka for a full series in the months of December and January.