The conditions and history rather favour New Zealand at this venue, but then Sri Lanka often make a mockery of the expected narrative

The Preview by Madushka Balasuriya21-Aug-2019

Big Picture

Chaos has been a constant in Sri Lankan cricket in 2019. Captaincy change – check; coach sacking – check; interim committee – check; sports ministry interference – check; contract terminations – check.Yet, quite incredibly, Sri Lanka are on a three-match winning streak in Tests, on the verge of consecutive Test series wins against South Africa and New Zealand. If results go their way in the Ashes, they could end up above either Australia or England in the Test rankings.Team selection and captaincy quandaries don’t seem such a big issue anymore as the selectors have seemingly stumbled upon a winning combination. A broken clock is indeed right twice a day. What does this mean for New Zealand?A series that began as a nice little warm-down from the emotionally and physically draining madness that was the World Cup final is now in must-win territory, with 60 World Test Championship points at stake. This isn’t to question New Zealand’s professionalism, but merely an indication of the resolve and fight shown by the hosts.New Zealand however do have history in their corner. They won at the P Sara Oval in 2012 to record their first Test win in Sri Lanka in 14 years. Their only other game here was drawn. Add to this, Sri Lanka have won less than half their matches at this ground.Both Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor registered tons in that 2012 win, and with the captain having had an underwhelming outing in Galle, he is due a big score. On a surface that is likely to offer more pace and bounce, Sri Lanka’s top order will also need to be more wary of the visitors’ pace threat.

Form guide

Sri Lanka WWWLD (last five completed matches, most recent first)
New Zealand LWWWD

In the spotlight

Trent Boult picked up seven wickets in his only match at the P Sara Oval. Having already troubled Sri Lanka’s batsmen on as pace averse a pitch as possible in Galle, he’ll be licking his lips at the prospect of squaring up to Sri Lanka’s top order again.Dimuth Karunaratne could not have asked for a better start to his Test career as captain. Three wins out of three, and a team that is fast gelling under his leadership. But he will know better than most how fragile a foundation this new found success has been built on. On a surface on which scores in excess of 400 and sub-200 are all possibilities, Karunaratne’s guiding hand at the top of the order will be crucial to the overall productivity of Sri Lanka’s batsmen.

Team news

Fit again, Dilruwan Perera will very likely come into the side in place of the still green Lasith Embuldeniya.Sri Lanka: 1 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), 2 Lahiru Thirimanne, 3 Kusal Mendis, 4 Angelo Mathews, 5 Kusal Perera, Niroshan Dickwella (wk) 7 Dhananjaya De Silva, 8 Dilruwan Perera, 9 Akila Dananjaya 10 Lahiru Kumara 11 Suranga LakmalFor New Zealand, fast bowler Neil Wagner could come in, though it remains to be seen if it’ll be at the expense of one of the spinners or the quicks.New Zealand: 1 Jeet Raval, 2 Tom Latham, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Henry Nicholls, 6 BJ Watling, 7 Mitchell Santner, 8 Ajaz Patel, 9 Will Somerville/Neil Wagner, 10 Trent Boult, 11 Tim Southee

Pitch and conditions

The pitch traditionally has more in it for the quicks, with a fair amount of pace and bounce, and back-bending effort is more often than not rewarded. However if the rain stays away and the pitch dries up, expect the spinners to come into play as the Test wears on.

Stats and trivia

• Sri Lanka’s Test record of nine wins and seven losses at the P Sara Oval is their second worst at any home venue with at least 10 matches played, the worst being at Asgiriya in Kandy (seven wins, nine losses)
• The win in Galle meant Sri Lanka won three successive Tests chasing for the first time in their history
• Currently placed second in the rankings, New Zealand will drop a place (or places, based on results in the Ashes) if they don’t level the series
• With 972 runs, Kane Williamson needs a further 56 to become the second-highest run scorer in bilateral ties between the two sides, going past Mahela Jayawardene. Stephen Fleming tops the list with 1166 runs

Quotes

“I think this pitch will suit the batsmen and fast bowlers more than the Galle surface did. I think there will be more runs here from both teams than there was in Galle.”
“In these conditions if you get yourself in you need to keep going and take the game as deep as possible. We’re probably guilty of that throughout the [first] Test match. Hopefully we can go a lot bigger here.”

Thakur’s three-wicket burst played a key role in dismissing the visitors cheaply before Gill struck an unbeaten 66

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Sep-2019India A extended their dominance over South Africa A on day one of the first four-day match in Thiruvananthapuram, bowling the visitors out for 164 before going to stumps within 35 runs of taking a first-innings lead with eight wickets in hand. Shardul Thakur’s three-wicket burst played a key role in dismissing the South Africans cheaply before captain Shubman Gill struck an unbeaten 66 to put India A in a commanding position.The India A quicks wreaked havoc with the new ball and the spinners cleaned up the tail to shoot out South Africa in the 52nd over. The visitors were in deep trouble at 22 for 5 in the 13th over before some lower-order contributions saved them from a complete collapse. Mohammed Siraj had the captain Adien Markram caught behind for a four-ball duck in the first over and Thakur followed that up with the wicket of Pieter Malan for an eight-ball duck in the fourth, to leave the scoreboard reading 0 for 2.There was no respite with the introduction of spin either, as Shahbaz Nadeem removed No. 3 Zubayr Hamza for 13, and Thakur soon sent back Khaya Zondo and Heinrich Klaasen in consecutive overs to leave them five down.A series of small partnerships thereafter – 30, 31 and 30 for the sixth, eighth and ninth wickets respectively – took South Africa past 100. Wiaan Mulder scored 21 and Dane Piedt chipped in with a quick 33 off 45, with six fours. But it was for the final wicket that the visitors added the most runs – 33 – with Marco Jansen top-scoring with an unbeaten 45, with four fours and two sixes, and Lungi Ngidi, the last man out, contributing 15.K Gowtham, who was reported unwell on the eve of the match, chipped in with three lower-order wickets, including those of Piedt and Mulder. Thakur finished with 3 for 29 while Nadeem bagged 2 for 37.In response, India started fluently, the openers adding 48 before Ruturaj Gaikwad was bowled by Jansen for 30. Gill was then joined by Ricky Bhui for a 58-run stand, which was broken by Ngidi, who cleaned up Bhui for 26, before Gill and No. 4 Ankit Bawne negotiated the last few overs of the day.

An unsuccessful run against Pakistan and India last season has not deterred Finch from wanting to get back to Australia’s Test side

Alex Malcolm24-Sep-2019Australia’s ODI and T20 captain Aaron Finch wants to make one more push at trying to play Test cricket again after a brief and ultimately unsuccessful stint last summer.Finch was surprisingly drafted into the Test team for the UAE series against Pakistan last October, in the wake of the suspensions to Cameron Bancroft, David Warner and Steven Smith following the ball-tampering scandal, despite a middling first-class record.He played five Tests, two against Pakistan away and three against India at home, making two half-centuries before he was dropped after the Boxing Day Test.Finch’s experiment at the top of the order in Tests had a huge impact on his limited-overs returns and put him under pressure heading towards the World Cup, but he regained his form and his confidence to lead Australia to the semi-final.But after riding the rollercoaster last year, Finch is ready to have one more push at trying to play Test cricket again this summer.”For me personally, it’s about probably having one really good crack at trying to get back to the Test team again,” Finch told radio station. “The young guys who came in and did well throughout the back half of last summer did a really good job. I still think that I’ve got one really good crack at it left in me.”There are four Sheffield Shield games before the first Test against Pakistan for Finch to make his case although he is likely to miss one game when he is required to lead Australia’s T20I team in six matches against Sri Lanka and Pakistan.He played one County Championship game for Surrey during his stint in England after the World Cup, scoring 90 against Hampshire at The Oval. He only managed one game for Victoria last summer in between Test, ODI and T20I duties.”Obviously [I’ll] just try and get some runs, get some big runs there. That’s my plan,” Finch said. “I think, the young kids who have come in a taken their opportunities, Kurtis Patterson and Travis Head, these guys have come in and done reasonably well when they’ve played.”Kurtis got a hundred in the last Test that he played. Will Pucovski and that whole crop of young batters who are coming through are so talented, so I think I’ve got one more push in it for myself. If it doesn’t happen then it doesn’t happen. I’m comfortable with that. It will be nice to play a few Shield games in a row to be fair. It’s been a while since I’ve played more than one in a row.”Finch said he watched the Ashes with envy and still felt a desire to be part of Test cricket. He took heart from Matthew Wade’s effort to get back to Test level and score two Ashes centuries after dominating Shield cricket last summer.One point of conjecture will be where he bats for Victoria. There was a lot of debate last year about his selection as a Test opener given in his 44 first-class innings prior to his Test debut he had batted no higher than No. 4 for either Victoria or Surrey.Victoria coach Andrew McDonald was adamant Finch would not open in his only game for Victoria last season and the compromise was that he batted at No. 3 against Queensland ahead of the first Test against India.”We haven’t spoken about that just yet,” Finch said. “There’s a lot of quality players in Victoria at the moment so getting a game might be the first start. I think middle order will probably be my preferred spot. I know doing the opening duties last summer was one of first times I’d really done it in the longer format but you take any opportunity you can when you play for Australia.”

It’s a second injury blow for Paarl Rocks after Aiden Markram was ruled out

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Nov-2019JP Duminy will play no part in the 2019 Mzansi Super League (MSL) after picking up a hamstring injury in the lead-up to Paarl Rocks’ season opener.Duminy, who retired earlier this year as the country’s highest run-getter in T20Is, was diagnosed with a high-grade partial tear to his right hamstring after undergoing an MRI scan. He had also missed last season’s MSL because of a hand injury.Duminy’s injury is a second blow to the Rocks squad. Earlier this month, Aiden Markram was ruled out from the competition after he hurt his hand in a self-inflicted injury on the tour of India.While Kyle Verreynne has since replaced Markram in the side, Rocks have not named one for Duminy yet. “We will assess our options on Monday,” Rocks coach Adrial Birrell said in a statement. “[We will] then decide how to best replace JP.”As for Rocks captain Faf du Plessis, he believes the two setbacks offer an opportunity for the rest of the squad to step up. “JP brings a lot of value in a lot of different areas. His experience will be missed, especially by the younger guys. I have full confidence in our team to bounce back from this. We have strengthened our batting this year and we’ll use this setback as motivation.”The semi-finalists from last season play their first game of the season against Quinton de Kock’s Cape Town Blitz on Sunday.

Newcomers can’t always rely on senior players, England skipper says

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Nov-2019It’s the vicious circle that confronts young aspirants to any plum job anywhere: must have experience but can’t get it without working in the field.Now that they’ve been handed the opportunity to gain valuable experience on England’s tour of New Zealand, Eoin Morgan wants his fringe T20 World Cup hopefuls to hold up their end of the bargain and learn from it – fast.Morgan cited inexperience as a factor in England’s 14-run loss to New Zealand in their third T20I after a batting collapse which saw them lose 5 for 10 in 18 balls after they had needed 42 off 32 balls with eight wickets in hand.Also read: England throw away chase as NZ squeeze homeThe England side featured six players making their first T20 international appearances during the tour and when Morgan was out for 18 with five overs remaining, England crumbled.”It is the most inexperienced side that we will field,” Morgan said. “We can’t come out expecting to win 5-0, we do need to learn and make mistakes throughout the whole series.”An important part of learning is recognising exactly where you were and what you did wrong. You can’t be blindsided or be stubborn enough to not take in good information.”It has been a great learning day for us and hopefully the guys take in the information and learn from that, hopefully pretty quickly. They have to, and they have to play games so in situations like that you have to throw them out in the middle of it, you can’t say your senior players always have to support them and nurture them.”Sam Billings, with 24 T20I caps, was run out by Colin Munro in a moment the Black Caps hailed as a turning point and James Vince fell a short time later, having reached 49 off 39 deliveries. From there only Tom Curran reached double figures with 14 not out as the tourists managed just 166 for 7 chasing 181.”With a lot of wickets in hand you’d expect us to win,” Morgan said. “Certainly we did, we were in control pretty much up until that point. The guys that came in, we didn’t do the simple things right.”We didn’t establish a partnership, we didn’t hit with the wind, things that the Black Caps did throughout. We do have to get better and calmer in those situations and when we’re chasing.”Tom Banton – one of the six England debutants for the series alongside Matt Parkinson, Sam Curran, Saqib Mahmood, Lewis Gregory and Pat Brown – made 18 off 10 in his first international match before he was bowled trying to ramp Blair Tickner in a knock that pleased Morgan.”He’s a free-spirited guy who plays expansive cricket, and we want him to do that,” Morgan said. “He gets out playing one of his strongest shots. We’ll encourage him to keep doing that.”Banton’s fellow opener Dawid Malan was England’s top scorer for the second match running, following his 39 off 29 balls in the second match – which England also lost – with 55 off 34. Malan expressed his disappointment at not being able to build on a strong start in Wellington and Morgan thought he would feel the same after his latest innings in Nelson.”It’s extremely disappointing for him,” Morgan said. “He’s one of the only opening batters that ever talks about seeing the majority of the innings through and being there at the end. It will hurt him.”England must win the penultimate fixture in Napier on Friday to keep the five-match series alive with New Zealand leading 2-1.

Ben Stokes became only the fifth cricketer to win the award on Sunday night

Andrew Miller15-Dec-2019

Jim Laker (1956)

The third winner of the Sports Review of the Year, as it was then known, and the first of many to demonstrate that its subsequent focus on “personality” was misplaced. Laker’s award-seizing feat may have been attention-grabbing – 19 wickets for 90 at Old Trafford, 10 for 53 in the second innings and all that – but the man himself was anything but.Colin Cowdrey dubbed him the “calm destroyer” as he wheeled his way through Australia’s resistance, before flopping his sweater over his shoulder and ambling off to the pavilion, job done. That evening he stopped off for a pie and a pint in a pub in Lichfield (en route to another match against the Australians at The Oval) and not a soul noticed he was there. His Austrian wife Lilly wasn’t exactly overwhelmed either. “Jim, did you do something good today?” she asked him that evening, after spending the day fielding endless phonecalls.David Steele sweeps as Rod Marsh looks on•PA Photos

David Steele (1975)

From Henry Cooper in 1967 to Nigel Mansell in 1986 and Damon Hill in 1994, SPOTY has had a long and illustrious association with gallant losers. But few were more gallant than Northamptonshire’s David Steele, the “bank clerk who went to war” in the 1975 Ashes. He pitted his bespectacled, greying features against the fearsome duo of Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson, and if he didn’t exactly win, then he barely took a backwards step in racking up consecutive scores of 50, 45, 73, 93, 39 and 66 in his three Tests of that summer.On his watch, England dug in for three draws, but surrendered the Ashes 1-0 having been routed in his absence, by an innings in the series opener at Edgbaston. To add to his legend, Steele (or “Groucho Marx” as Thomson is said to have dubbed him) got lost en route to the crease for his maiden innings at Lord’s, ending up in the basement toilets after descending too many flights of stairs.Ian Botham cuts a relaxed figure in the middle•PA Photos/Getty Images

Ian Botham (1981)

Okay, so every now and again, SPOTY’s “personality” epithet gets it spot on. Botham was rightly immortalised by his feats in the summer of 1981, but long before he put Australia to the sword with his swashbucklings at Headingley, Edgbaston and Old Trafford, he had been the coming man in the British sporting imagination. He finished third in the SPOTY standings in 1978, his first full year of Test cricket, and second a year later (when his feat of doing the 1000-run/100-wicket double in 21 Tests was trumped by Seb Coe and his three world records in 41 days).But at the third time of asking, there could be no other winner. The runner-up, Steve Davis, snooker’s self-styled ‘Mr Interesting’ never stood a chance. He would finish second once again in 1985 after yet more Aussie-bashing derring-do, by which stage his bleach-blond mullet and waistline-to-shoulderline ratio had made him look even larger than life than ever before.

Andrew Flintoff (2005)

In the seminal summer of 2005, Andrew Flintoff became the ultimate Boy’s Own hero, a salt-of-the-earth Prestonian who could bat like a blacksmith, bowl like a galumphing wildebeest, and drink anyone left standing under the table. In a summer writ large with some of the most towering personalities cricket has ever produced – Shane Warne and the newcomer Kevin Pietersen among them – Flintoff bested them all, first with his startling seizure of the second Test at Edgbaston (that over to Ricky Ponting, or the “hello massive” six off Brett Lee? Take your pick) but then, in the wake of Ashes glory at The Oval, with the most heroic display of public inebriation ever countenanced.As he staggered to Trafalgar Square with eyes as pied as a piper’s, Freddie proved he was one of us, the bloke from the pub who had answered his country’s call. And, in the final summer before Test cricket disappeared from terrestrial TV, he seemed also to be the last break-out star that the grand old game would be capable of producing…

The ODIs against New Zealand in March will be used to raise money for the Red Cross bushfire appeal as well

Andrew McGlashan04-Jan-2020Cricket Australia chief executive Kevin Roberts would be open to the idea of staging a charity match to raise funds for the bushfire appeal as the natural disaster continues to ravage large areas of the country.Australia is in the midst of one of its worst ever bushfire seasons which has led to fatalities, mass evacuations and significant loss of property. The Christmas and New Year period has been especially severe in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.There have already been a number of initiatives put in place across cricket, including players in the Big Bash League pledging donations for sixes hit and wickets taken and the Australia team auctioning off signed shirts from the Boxing Day Test which had raised over AUD$40,000. On the opening day of the Sydney Test players from both sides wore black armbands in memory of those who have died in the fires while there was a one-minute applause to honour the emergency services.CA has also announced that the ODIs between Australia and New Zealand in March will be used to raise money for the Red Cross bushfire appeal, but if the pieces could be put into place Roberts said the potential is there for a standalone fixture.”I’d love to think we could do something along those lines, we’ve all got great memories that the role those sort of events have played in disaster and tragedy in the past and would like to think we can make the most of those ODIs in March,” he told radio. “We are very open to other initiatives that could include celebrity matches, we’ve got a very crowded cricket calendar, we have to make sure what we do has maximum impact. If there’s time, space and availability of the right people nothing is off the table.”In the past there have been matches staged to raise money after severe bushfires. In 1994, South Africa played an extra game against a New South Wales XI following bad fires in Sydney early in the year. Further back in 1967, after devastating fires in Tasmania, a fundraising match was staged at the MCG and in 1983, Australia played New Zealand in a one-off match at the SCG.In January 2005, the MCG staged the tsunami appeal match between an ICC World XI and an Asia XI to raise money following the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami. Years later, James Sutherland, who was CA chief executive at the time, recalled the impact of that match and how boards and player associations had worked to bring it together.”Between Tim May [former head of the ACA and FICA] and I, there was always something to fight about, but when that happened we said, ‘We’re going to do something special’ and he was able to get through his FICA the players to commit to come here and play,” he said in 2018. “Together we put on an event that was extraordinary and raised more than A$15 million for a huge tragedy. It was a reminder of the power of what cricket can achieve when it galvanises all its forces.”

Cleaver and Mitchell put on unbroken 86-run stand to make sure the day ended with honours even

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Feb-2020Dane Cleaver once again proved a thorn in India A’s side, scoring a dogged, unbeaten 46 to make sure honours were even at the end of day one of the second four-day fixture in Lincoln.After choosing to bat, New Zealand A were in danger of falling away at 190 for 5, but Cleaver, fresh off his rearguard 196 in the previous game, dug in. He received good support from Daryl Mitchell, who is back in the A team after the T20Is for the senior team against India.Significantly for the Indians, New Zealand A kept R Ashwin wicketless in 22 overs – not ideal preparation for the offspinner, it would seem, ahead of the two-Test series that begins on February 21.New Zealand A would be disappointed that none of their top order carried on after getting starts – the top four all got into double-digits before falling, with only Glenn Phillips getting to a half-century.Phillips was caught behind on 65, one of two quick strikes by pacer Avesh Khan. Earlier in the day, Mohammed Siraj had struck twice and left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem had opener Will Young edging behind – one of three catches to KS Bharat – but that was the extent of the visitors’ success on the day. Cleaver and Mitchell went to stumps having put on 86 runs together.

ESPNcricinfo understands there are still inquiries pending against Malik beyond allegations of match-fixing in 2000

Umar Farooq24-Apr-2020A movement appears to have begun urging the PCB to reintegrate Saleem Malik, the former batsman and captain who was banned for life in 2000 after being found guilty of attempting to fix a Test in Justice Qayyum’s report. It has gained prominence with support from Inzamam-ul-Haq and Saqlain Mushtaq and has now ignited a discussion about Malik’s suitability for a return to the fold. ESPNcricinfo understands, however, that there are still inquiries pending against Malik beyond the allegations that formed the basis of his role in the Qayyum report.These inquiries are related to a sting operation in England conducted by Mazhar Mehmood, the same journalist who broke the 2010 spot-fixing scandal that resulted in three Pakistani cricketers – Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif – going to jail. The PCB had intended to open a file based on that information eight years ago and called upon Malik for clarification but he never responded. Although Malik had volunteered to clear his name when the PCB set up an integrity commission in the wake of the 2010 spot-fixing saga, he is yet to adhere to the summons based on the Mehmood sting.”There were outstanding and serious questions with regard to his [Malik’s] integrity,” Tafazzul Rizvi, PCB legal attorney, told ESPNcricinfo. “He was given a transcript to clarify but he never returned even after repeated calls.”Malik’s cricketing career was ultimately sullied by the match-fixing scandals. In a judicial inquiry – that began in 1998 and continued for 13 months – he was found guilty of bribing Australian cricketers Shane Warne and Mark Waugh to lose the 1994-95 Karachi Test. Malik was fined Rs 1 million and banned for life in 2000, but eight years later his sentence was overturned by a Lahore sessions court, allowing him theoretically to return to the fold.That led briefly to a farcical situation when Malik said he had accepted as position as coach at the National Cricket Academy, only for the PCB to deny any such appointment had been made the next day.ALSO READ: Come to Think of it: Have we forgotten Saleem Malik, the batsman?Since then, Malik has kept his distance from the game – until now. In a video message released to media the 57-year old Malik requested the PCB to consider him for any coaching job, citing examples of recent cricketers who have made their way back into the system after completing their sentence.”I see there are a lot of cricketers saying good things about my batting, fielding and captaincy,” Malik said on seeking a second innings in cricket. “Since 2008, when the honourable court lifted my ban, I had tried to get a coaching job but was never considered. In recent years, Mohammad Amir went on to play for Pakistan; Salman Butt, [Mohammad] Asif [are] playing domestic cricket [and] even Sharjeel Khan went on to play PSL. So I request the PCB, if I am of any use for them, please consider me. I wish I [will] be able to serve Pakistan in any shape whatever I can do in my capacity. Whatever skill I have, I can pass on it to youngsters.”Despite the ban, Malik remains highly-regarded for his cricket knowledge among contemporaries. Rashid Latif, a key whistleblower in the first wave of match-fixing, has spoken well of Malik as a player, though did caution against the reintegration of someone found guilty of corruption. Both Inzamam and Mushtaq, who also feature in the Qayyum report, believe that Malik should be pardoned and allowed to serve Pakistan cricket again.Coaching vacancies have opened up as the PCB restructures the NCA, but ESPNcricinfo understands that the PCB hasn’t shown any interest in taking up Malik’s offer.

The series was to be played in June as part of the World Test Championship cycle

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Apr-2020The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and Cricket Australia (CA) have mutually agreed to postpone the two-Test series that was scheduled for June, due to the persisting Covid-19 threat. The boards took the decision with the welfare of their players and communities in mind, and will work together to find a suitable date to play the series once the situation becomes clearer.The series was to be played between June 11 and June 23 in Chattogram and Dhaka, and is part of the World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. It becomes the third WTC series to affected after the Sri Lanka-England series scheduled for March, and the second Test of Bangladesh’s staggered tour of Pakistan, which was scheduled to begin on April 5.BCB CEO Nizam Uddin Chowdhury said, “This is understandably disappointing for players and fans of both sides. However, in the current global scenario of the Covid-19 outbreak and considering the nature of the health emergency, the BCB and CA are in agreement that this is the most sensible and practical decision. We hope that the situation will improve soon and we are able to hold this series at a convenient time in the near future. To that end, the BCB will continue to work closely with CA with whom we share a history of support and cooperation.”The series is among two WTC series that are scheduled for June, with England scheduled to host West Indies around the same time. It was also to be Australia’s first visit to Bangladesh since their 1-1 series draw in 2017 – and, in fact, their first meeting in a bilateral setting since that one. Australia had, in 2018, called off hosting Bangladesh for two Tests and three ODIs because broadcasters were understood to have been uninterested in televising the series in the middle of the football season.”Postponing the tour is regrettable,” CA chief Kevin Roberts said through a statement, “but I would like to thank the Bangladesh Cricket Board for the open, honest and responsible discussions that led us to this mutually-agreed position. The health of our people and communities is the number one priority for both Boards and that is reflected in the action we have taken in postponing the two Test matches. As we know, the global cricket calendar is very busy but we will do everything we can to honour our commitment to Bangladesh and will continue to work with the BCB on an agreed date.”Australia are currently second in the WTC table with 296 points, having won two of their three series, while Bangladesh sit at the bottom, in ninth place with no points after one completed series.