Coronavirus: Australia’s Bangladesh Tour 2020 Postponed

The coronavirus pandemic forced Australia's test tour of Bangladesh, scheduled for June, to be postponed indefinitely.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) confirmed the developments in the press release on Thursday. The BCB and Cricket Australia (CA) are also working closely to consider a potential date for the rescheduling of the series that is part of the ICC World Test Championship.

"This is undoubtedly frustrating for both sides 'players and supporters. However, in the present global scenario of the outbreak of COVID-19, and given the complexity of the health emergency, BCB and CA accept that this is the most prudent and realistic move, "said Nizam Uddin Chowdhury, CEO of BCB, in a press release.

“We hope that the situation will improve soon and we are able to hold this series at a convenient time in the near future. To that end, the BCB will continue to work closely with CA with whom we share a history of support and cooperation,” he said. 

CA’s CEO Kevin Roberts said it is regrettable to postpone the series, but he thanked BCB for the decision. 

“Postponing the tour is regrettable, but I’d like to thank the Bangladesh Cricket Board for the open, honest and responsible discussions that led us to this mutually-agreed position. The health of our people and communities is the number one priority for both Boards and that is reflected in the action we’ve taken in postponing the two Test matches,” Roberts was quoted as saying in the statement. 

“As we know, the global cricket calendar is very busy but we’ll do everything we can to honour our commitment to Bangladesh and will continue to work with the BCB on an agreed date,” he said.

Previously, Bangladesh's ODI Pakistan Tour and Karachi Test are also postponed owing to the same reason. At the same moment, Bangladesh's tour of Ireland for ODIs and T20Is also saw a drastic postponement owing to coronavirus outbreaks.

COVID-19, first reported in China in December last year, has infected more than 1.5 million people globally and killed over 89,000 of them, according to Worldometer.

Source: UNB