Australia edges closer to Bangladesh tour

A Bangladesh Cricket Board senior official has indicated he believes a proposed Test tour by Steve Smith's Australians will go ahead later this year.

On Tuesday, BCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said he expected the two Tests to be played in Dhaka, reports cricket.com.au

"We are now working on the schedule and other details with CA," Chowdhury told AFP.

Australia have not played in Bangladesh since Ricky Ponting's team toured there in 2006 and, outside major tournaments, the two nations have played just two ODI series against each other in Darwin (2008) and Dhaka (2011) since then.

A CA spokesperson said the safety of player and officials would determine the fate of any tour.

“We are still hopeful of touring Bangladesh in the near future and are working closely with the BCB to look at options, but the safety of players and officials will always come first," the CA spokesperson said.

"We will continue to monitor advice from ASIO, DFAT and our own security advisors about the security risk for any future tours of the Australian team in Bangladesh and make a decision based on this advice closer to any potential tour."

Australia had been scheduled to play two Tests and a tour match in Dhaka and Chittagong in October 2015, but the tour was postponed due to security concerns.

The prospect of a two-Test series in August and September this year had been raised by Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland in January, but the tour has not been confirmed.