Pakistan vs Bangaldesh 2020: PCB turns down BCB's offer to play one Test in Pakistan and another in Bangladesh 

What's the story?

The status of Bangladesh tour of Pakistan 2020 continues to hang in the air as the officials of both the boards are yet to take a final decision about the venues. In the most recent development on the issue, the Pakistan Cricket Board dismissed Bangladesh Cricket Board's proposal to play one Test in Pakistan and the other in Dhaka.

The background

After successfully hosting Sri Lanka in a two-match Test series at home, PCB wants Bangladesh to play all the matches of the upcoming tour in Pakistan. According to reports, BCB has agreed to play the T20Is in Pakistan but they are still not ready to play Test matches in the nation.

Pakistan v Sri Lanka - ODI

Bangladesh had requested PCB to host the matches at a neutral venue, only for the PCB to turn them down.

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To convince the PCB, the BCB had sent out a proposal where the two teams would play one Test in Pakistan while the Bangla Tigers would host the second Test in Dhaka.

The heart of the matter

Talking to PTI on Sunday (5th January), a senior PCB official revealed that the board found BCB's proposal strange. He said:

"It is strange that the BCB wants Pakistan to play a Test in Bangladesh in return. Privately the proposal to have one Test in Pakistan and one in Bangladesh has been floated but has been rejected."

Splitting the series across the two countries would effectively neutralize Pakistan's home advantage, which is probably why the proposal was rejected.

Bangladesh

What's next?

It will be intriguing to see the final decision of the two parties involved. PCB is in no mood to play at a neutral venue while BCB is not ready to play both the Tests in Pakistan. The tour is scheduled to get underway from 18 January.

As the Test matches will be part of the ICC World Test Championship, PCB may not want to lose any points by hosting their home Tests outside Pakistan.