The England and Wales Cricket Board has decided to send their security team to Bangladesh for a three-day visit to review and check the security for the upcoming tour. The security delegation, which is expected to arrive in Dhaka on Wednesday (17th August) will meet with Asaduzzaman Khan, Bangladesh's home minister.
Along with this, they will have meetings with Bangladesh’s local security agencies and with the U.K and Australian high commission.
The security team consists PCA chief executive David Leatherdale, ECB’s security advisor Reg Dickason and ECB's director of cricket operations John Carr. The visit is a routine procedure carried out before a tour but the importance of this particular visit is due to the terrorist attack in Dhaka in the month of July which claimed the lives of 20 people.
Soon after that, there was speculation that the ECB might cancel the tour due to the security issues. The England team is expected to land Bangladesh next month on September 30 to play an ODI series of three one-day internationals and a two-match Test series.
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The visit is likely to extend to three days. The BCB's media chairman Jalal Yunus said to the ESPN that they would conduct meetings with other top officials if the England delegation made a request.
"We have been in constant communication with the ECB for the past few months," Yunus said. "Their meeting with the British and Australian High Commissions, the home minister and the security agencies will be of importance.”
England's Under-19 team had participated in the World Cup in January this year and the BCB is also confident about the senior team's tour. Cricket Australia had withdrawn their Under-19 side from the tournament and had earlier postponed a tour scheduled for October 2015 due to security reasons.
Jalal said, "Besides if they want to meet any other top officials of the government, we will get them the appointment. Terrorism is not an issue only in Bangladesh but in many parts of the world like London, Paris or India. But that does not mean sports will be stopped or hampered."
"We had arranged such a big tournament without any trouble and England sent their team to it. I hope they will take note of that," Yunus said. "If Bangladesh have managed to provide proper security to so many teams during the Under-19 World Cup, they should realise that it should be way easy to take care of a single team," said Yunus to ESPN.
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Yunus also said the tour is being seen as an event important to "national interest", and security concerns will be taken seriously by everyone involved.
Asking co-operation from everyone he said, "We need cooperation from everyone. This tour of England has become a national interest now and I will expect everyone to do their respective duty properly,”
From Bangladesh, the England side will depart to India to play a test series that is scheduled to be played here in India.
