Internet Desk: Bangladesh will visit their neighbor India to play their first ever test match on Indian soil in February 2017. India and Bangladesh will have a play-off test match in Hyderabad. Both the cricket boards of the two neighboring countries took this decision focusing on the mission of giving importance on test matches.
Today Board of Control for Cricket in India President Anurag Thakur declared the final venue and date for the one-off test match between the two teams. He said, “As a leading Test playing nation it is BCCI’s responsibility to give opportunity to every Test playing nation. It is my pleasure to announce the historic one-off Test match against our neighbours – Bangladesh early next year. This will be a great addition to our home season 2016-17.”
It took 16years for Bangladesh to come for an official tour to India. In 2000 Bangladesh go the Test status. Since then they came in India twice- during the 2006 Champions Trophy qualifiers and the 2016 World T20.
Bangladesh will play the lone test match starting from 8th February at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad. Bangladesh also welcomed the initiative from BCCI. According to them this kind of mind set up from Indian side will break the discussion of two-stage categorization of Test cricket. The proposal of two-stage categorization of Test cricket appeared from ICC which was defended by Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Now inviting Bangladesh in India they also showed their support to the two neighboring countries of India.
Bangladesh Cricket Board President Nazmul Hassan said the short tour would be a cherished experience for players and fans of both countries: “For the cricketers who will be representing Bangladesh and India, this will be a much anticipated game and given the competitive nature of their limited overs matches in the recent past, I believe the clash between these two cricket crazy nations will catch the imagination.”
He also expressed, “The long wait for us to play a Test match on Indian soil is finally over and this is a time for celebration”.