Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) have announced a three-match T20I series against Bangladesh at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Dehradun, India. The matches are scheduled for the 3rd, 5th and 7th of Jun 2018 before Afghanistan head to Bengaluru to play their maiden test match against India.
ACB chairman Atif Mashal said on their Cricket Board website, www.cricket.af “ACB is delighted to host Bangladesh for the T20I series in Dehradun in early June which will be a good opportunity for both sides to play competitive cricket. Similarly, cricket fans have also previously enjoyed games between the two sides and this will be yet another opportunity for them to witness their sides play against each other.”
Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) CEO Nizam Uddin Chowdhury said “This promises to be a very competitive series. Afghanistan have some fine players for this format and they will have the advantage of familiarity with the conditions in Dehradun. However, the Bangladesh team is a confident and experienced unit and we are really looking forward to the matches.”
Afghanistan are currently ranked 8th in the ICC T20I Team rankings while Bangladesh are ranked 10th. With Top 10 ranked teams to qualify directly for ICC WorldT20 in 2020, this series will provide some crucial T20I points for both the teams, whoever wins the series eventually. BCCI provided the Dehradun facility for Afghanistan’s use earlier this year. All matches will be day/night affairs and will start at 8pm IST.
The series was earlier being discussed to be played in the 50-overs format but now it will be played in the T20 format. Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) were unsure about playing in Dehradun earlier and sent their delegation to inspect the ground and gave their green signal after that.
