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Australia delay Bangladesh tour departure over security concerns
Posted On Sep 28 2015
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He continued, “Our preferred position is to continue with the tour, but the safety and security of our players and staff is the absolute priority and the first priority for us is to secure that”.
With a three-day tour match set to start on Saturday in Fatullah and the opening Test in Chittagong from October 9, CA chief executive James Sutherland admits time is a factor.
He is also believed to participate in a succession of meetings with the Australian High Commissioner in Bangladesh, Government of Bangladesh and police officials to enquire about the prevailing situation in the cricket-mad nation.
However, Cricket Australia (CA), which received a travel advisory from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), has put the departure of the players on hold and is chalking out a revised security plan for the tour. I want to assure the Australian team through you, we are sure full security.
“They have information that Australian interest is under threat but that is not confined to Bangladesh, it is also in other neighbouring countries”, Hassan told reporters after meeting Carroll.
CA outlined it is not known if the matches will go ahead as scheduled. The security plan was extensively discussed by CA’s security manager Sean Carroll, who arrived in Bangladesh on Sunday, and the Bangladeshi intelligence agencies.
“It is known to all, the fear is baseless”, Kamal said adding that the Australian cricket team will eventually would visit Bangladesh. “We are hopeful the tour will be on schedule”.
The earliest the Australian team could leave, assuming a prompt and positive report from Carroll, would be on Tuesday night. “In the meantime, we are keeping our players and support staff fully informed”.
“It’s only a very short window here, 25 days”, Sutherland said.
Australia and West Indies both refused to play matches in Sri Lanka during the 1996 World Cup after bombings in Colombo while New Zealand cut short tours of Pakistan and Sri Lanka for similar reasons.
