Bangladesh will travel to Sri Lanka a month before the series and this will be a big help in terms of preparation, believes top-order batsman Soumya Sarkar.
Soumya is among the cricketers who took part in individual training sessions at Bangladesh Cricket Board facilities under special arrangement.
The 27-year old was elated after getting some action under his belt as he batted in the nets following almost four and a half months.
The Tigers are likely to travel to Sri Lanka on September 24 and begin their three-match Test series, part of the World Test Championship, on October 24.
The tour is also likely to include a three-game Twenty20 international series.
The series was originally scheduled to take place in July-August this year, comprising only three Tests, but got postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“You find it different when you start fresh or after a long break. I believe travelling to Sri Lanka a month before the series will give us enough time to prepare. It will be a long tour, but we have to do it for the importance of health and safety. We should consider this a part of team work as well,” said Soumya following his practice session at Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in the capital Thursday.
Soumya emphasized on the importance of following health protocols strictly in order to combat the novel coronavirus outbreak.
From the start of the tour, Bangladesh will need to follow strict health protocols, and undergo Covid-19 test before leaving Dhaka and after reaching Colombo.
Cricketers part of the tour are likely to be involved in a residential camp.
“Safety is a big issue because our team is like a family. We have to be safe and remain in quarantine. We have to abide by all the rules and I think it will be good. Because if anyone sustains it then it will transmit to others,” said the lad hailing from Satkhira.
Soumya is relieved that Bangladesh cricket will finally taste some competitive action after a long pause, albeit in a foreign land.
BCB had suspended all sorts of cricket activities in the country in March due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The stance by cricket’s regulatory body in the country remains the same when it comes to having the game played on Bangladesh soil, but a better virus situation in Sri Lanka encouraged the BCB to make both the national team and High Performance Unit tour the island.
“It is relieving that we are also about to start playing. Watching others play [like England, the West Indies and Pakistan] used to make me sad thinking when we will be able to play. I heard [Wednesday] that our tour of Sri Lanka has been confirmed. I am happy about it,” said Soumya.
“Last few months [staying at home] was fine but I was unhappy that we were not able to play. Other than that I was able to give time to my family. It was unusual at the beginning but soon I got used to it,” he added.