Australia likely to tour Bangladesh next year

Australia might finally tour Bangladesh next year after a planned series last October was postponed due to security concerns, James Sutherland, Cricket Australia’s chief executive, has revealed.

‘We’ve had discussions off-line with the Bangladesh Cricket Board,’ Sutherland told cricket.com.au on Tuesday (April 26). ‘They know and understand that we`re absolutely committed to playing that (postponed) tour, obviously subject to security matters that we need to go through in preparation for that tour. But we’re very much looking forward to getting back to Bangladesh and playing cricket over there.’

A 15-man Australian squad that included uncapped Cameron Bancroft and Andrew Fekete, were scheduled to play two Tests and a tour match in Dhaka and Chittagong in October 2015 but the tour was deferred based on advice received from the Australian Government’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of an increasing security risk.

Australia last played a two-match Test series in Bangladesh in 2006, when Ricky Ponting’s side won the series 2-0 with wins in Fatullah and Chittagong.

Sutherland has confirmed that CA has recently had discussions with the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the series has been pencilled into the international schedule for the 2017 southern hemisphere winter subject to security clearances.

The rescheduled Test series could happen in July or September next year, either side of Bangladesh’s scheduled Test and One-Day International visit to Australia.