Bangladesh Cricket Board president Nazmul Hasan (C) speaks to the reporters at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Monday. — BCB photo

Bangladesh cricket team’s upcoming tour of Sri Lanka was thrown into grave uncertainty when the Bangladesh Cricket Board president Nazmul Hasan declined to send the team under the strict regulations proposed by Sri Lanka Cricket.

After a meeting with other board directors at BCB office on Monday, Nazmul told reporters that they won’t send the team to Sri Lanka to play three Tests, which are part of the ICC World Test championship, under the conditions provided by SLC which left little room for preparation before the series.

On Saturday, BCB received an email from SLC where it proposed conditions such as a mandatory 14-day quarantine after arrival, only allowing 30 members in the Bangladesh contingent etc for the upcoming series, which the BCB boss outright declined to follow.

‘Under these conditions, it is not possible for us to play Test Championship,’ a disgruntled Nazmul told reporters.

‘We were thinking about going to Sri Lanka with a big team because we thought the COVID-19 situation is better there and we can train our players there because here in Bangladesh everything is closed. We were communicating on that basis. But the proposal we received is far from reality and not even close to what we agreed upon,’ he added.

Nazmul said that he was surprised by such extreme restrictions and questioned if the Sri Lankan authorities were hiding the severity of the pandemic in that region.

‘In some places, the quarantine period is for seven days, but the players can practice among themselves. In some it’s for three days. They are allowed to use the gym. But in the proposal I saw yesterday [Sunday] nobody can get out of the hotel room, even to get food.

‘The reason behind this is maybe the COVID-19 situation is far more severe than what we know, so we suspect there is something we don’t know,’ he said.

Nazmul also claimed that SLC denied the practice and logistic facilities BCB had asked for.

‘They will not provide net bowlers, throwers; will not allow us to practice. Even in hotel, the team members can’t leave the room for having food! This is rare in history; this is not even close to what is being followed in some other parts of the world where cricket is being played during this time.’

BCB has already communicated its thoughts on the proposals to SLC and the fate of the series will remain on a limbo till SLC responds.

 ‘We have communicated our decision. Under the regulations they proposed, there is no way we can play an important series like ICC Test Championship. We informed our decision, now it’s their turn. Either they will come back to us with a new proposal or they might not it’s up to them,’ he said.

The BCB president’s issues with the proposed regulations have reached the ears of Sri Lankan government high-ups, with the island nation’s sports minister Namal Rajapaksa telling SLC to renegotiate the strict restrictions with the country’s health authorities.

‘As we all know the #COVID19 pandemic is still at large globally, prevention measures are a high priority. However, given the significance of #cricket in the region, I have asked @OfficialSLC to consult the covid task force and reconsider the @BCBtigers matter,’ Rajapaksa said on Twitter shortly after Nazmul spoke in Dhaka.

If the series eventually doesn’t take place, then the board will shift its focus on restarting domestic cricket, said Nazmul.