Bangladesh's Tour of Sri Lanka Postponed Due to COVID-19 Crisis: ICC
BCB chairman had said earlier this month that players were not too keen to tour Sri Lanka next month due to the Covid-19 threat.
The Bangladesh cricket team's tour of Sri Lanka next month was on Wednesday postponed owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has wreaked havoc on international sports schedules worldwide. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) said on Wednesday that it was informed by Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) that their players are yet to be ready to take part in an international series.
"Sri Lanka Cricket wishes to announce that the Bangladesh Cricket Board has informed SLC that a conducive environment has still not arrived for their players to take part in an international cricket series, purely due to the lack of preparation for its players, caused by the Covid 19 pandemic," said the SLC in its statement.
"Hence, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and Sri Lanka Cricket have agreed that Bangladesh National Team's tour of Sri Lanka which was scheduled to be held during July 2020 will not take place and will be deferred to a mutually planned later date."
The International Cricket Council (ICC) also tweeted the development. "Bangladesh's tour to Sri Lanka, scheduled to take place next month, has been postponed," it said in its tweet.
Bangladesh was scheduled to tour Sri Lanka next month for a three-Test series. Bangladesh's upcoming Test series against New Zealand in August-September was also postponed.
Earlier,the COVID-19 pandemic on Tuesday led to New Zealand's Test tour of Bangladesh being postponed due to the health threat posed by pandemic after three cricketers from the South Asian country recently tested positive for the virus.
New Zealand were slated to play a two-Test series in Bangladesh in August-September as part of the ICC World Test Championship.
Last week, Bangladesh's former ODI captain Mashrafe Mortaza, Nazmul Islam and Nafees Iqbal also tested positive for the deadly contagion.
BCB had earlier postponed its Test tour of Pakistan in April apart from the Ireland and UK tour in May.
Australia's tour of Bangladesh, originally scheduled for June, has also been deferred, owing to the pandemic.
International cricket is set for resumption next month when England take on the West Indies in a home Test series.
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