Cricket Australia has postponed Australia’s tour to Bangladesh citing security fears, its official website cricket.com.au reported on October 1.
Cricket Australia (CA) CEO James Sutherland confirmed that the scheduled month-long tour, which was set to get underway with a warm-up match in Fatullah on Saturday, will not go ahead as planned.
“This has been a very difficult decision,” Sutherland said. “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.”
The decision came after a three-man security delegation, who returned from Dhaka after assessing the security, had talks with Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), the CA's board and the Australian Cricketers' Association.
“In the end, all things considered, we've made this decision to postpone the tour for now and we'll enter into discussions with the Bangladesh Cricket Board about when we can play this cricket series next,” said Sutherland.
He praised the Bangladesh Cricket Board and the Bangladesh government, saying their co-operation over the past six days “has been nothing short of outstanding”. He also expressed sympathy for Bangladesh cricket and its supporters, but said the safety of the Australian players and staff was the top priority.
Australia’s 15-man squad, who had been scheduled to fly out for Bangladesh last Monday morning, were delayed after the DFAT informed CA they had “reliable information” about a possible security risk.
Members of Australia's Test squad were sent back to their respective state sides on Wednesday and will now take part in the Matador BBQs One-Day Cup, which starts in Sydney on Monday.
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