Competitive cricket is set to get back to the field in Bangladesh finally as the mainstream cricketers are ready to do battle in the three-team BCB President’s Cup 50-over tournament, starting Sunday.
In the opening day of the tournament, Mahmudullah XI will take on Nazmul Hossain Shanto XI at Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium at 1:30pm.
The third team will be led by ODI captain Tamim Iqbal.
To be played in a double-league format, a total of 54 cricketers, including the standby players, will participate in the two-week long tournament.
The tournament has come as a good opportunity for a good number of World Cup-winning U-19 cricketers to prove themselves among the big names.
Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium undergoes last-minute preparations before the BCB President's Cup Dhaka Tribune
The cricketers have been made part of a bio-security bubble and as per the last round of Covid-19 tests, all members, including the coaching staff, came out negative.
Cricket was suspended in the country in March this year due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Bangladesh Cricket Board came to the decision to hold the tournament last month after the national team’s tour of Sri Lanka was postponed for indefinite period.
BCB had declined to send the national team tour the island for a three-match Test series citing the conditions set for Covid-19 health safety by the health authority of the country as “unique”.
All matches of the 50-over tournament are day-night affairs and will be streamed live on the official BCB facebook page.