SL series in jeopardy, cricketers to continue practising
SLC has been trying to make the tour happen at any cost. They have already asked the respective authority to lax the quarantine period and other instructions but to no avail. SLC has not let Bangladesh know the final decision yet and it has been 10 days since BCB President Nazmul Hassan spoke out.
Bangladesh's proposed tour of Sri Lanka has become uncertain due to a dispute over the quarantine period. There are serious doubts about the series as Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) are pushing for a 14-day isolation period as per the instructions from their health ministry. On the other hand, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) are staying put on their decision of not touring Sri Lanka accepting their demands.
SLC has been trying to make the tour happen at any cost. They have already asked the respective authority to lax the quarantine period and other instructions but to no avail. SLC has not let Bangladesh know the final decision yet and it has been 10 days since BCB President Nazmul Hassan spoke out.
On the contrary, Bangladesh is now close to their planned date of travelling to Sri Lanka, which is September 27. As the series is not confirmed, the date of departure from Bangladesh might change and this is a big possibility right now, informed BCB CEO Nizam Uddin Chowdhury.
He also informed that even if the Sri Lanka tour does not happen, the cricketers will continue to practice within the bio-secure bubble created by BCB. And if the tour does not happen, BCB is planning to arrange domestic tournaments as an alternative. He added that the domestic tournament might happen even if the Sri Lanka tour takes place.
"We don't know the decision yet though we are preparing accordingly to our plan of travelling to Sri Lanka on September 27. For now, it will be challenging to travel on September 27. There are visa issues and other complications. In that case, we will adjust if necessary," the BCB CEO said.
Chowdhury could not disclose any special message regarding the tour on Wednesday as he said that the boards were still discussing. He said, "There were some restrictions in the health guide they sent. If they persist with those, it will be difficult for us to make the tour happen."
"We have communicated on these issues. The latest situation is that we let them know some facts. After knowing them, they told us that they are talking with their Covid-19 taskforce and other authorities to relax the instructions. Hopefully, they will let us know soon," Chowdhury added.
The BCB CEO also added that the issues were not completely depending on SLC. He said, "The whole thing is not fully dependent on SLC. This is the decision of their government and Covid-19 taskforce. As far as we know, SLC has been trying to contact them and make them understand our situation."
Whatever the decision might be, BCB is not stopping their work based on that as all kinds of preparations are going on and the cricketers will continue to practice within the bio-secure bubble until the final decision arrives.
"We have some internal plans. If this series does not happen, then we have other plans. We will continue our practice until the final decision arrives," the BCB CEO informed.
He added, "The practice sessions will continue the same. The final decision regarding the series might change our plans. But even if the series takes place, still we have plans of arranging domestic cricket."