Australia postpone Test tour to Bangladesh due to security concerns

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Melbourne, Oct 1: Australia today postponed their Test tour to Bangladesh due to security and safety concerns, Cricket Australia (CA) announced.

CA, in a media release on Thursday, said that "due to concern about the safety and security of the Australian Test team, it has been forced to postpone the up-coming Qantas Tour of Bangladesh".

CA Chief Executive Officer James Sutherland said, "This has been a very difficult decision. Following the most recent information from Australian Government agencies and our own security advisors, we have decided that, regrettably, we have no alternative but to postpone the tour."

"Over the last few days we have sought to obtain as much information as possible about the risks for Australians travelling to Bangladesh.

"We had hoped that the security concerns would fade, but unfortunately the advice we have received from government, our own security experts and independent security advisors has clearly indicated that there are now high risks to our people should they make the trip.

"We have worked tirelessly to try to find a way for the tour to proceed, but in the end it was simply not possible. Given the situation, we have now advised the BCB and the International Cricket Council of our decision. We understand that this decision will be very disappointing for the cricket community in Bangladesh," he added.

Australia were scheduled to play in Bangladesh from October 3 to 21. They were to play a 3-day warm-up game and 2 Tests.

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