Papon questions CA's decision

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan Papon has said that he would discuss the postponement of the Australian cricket team's tour at length during the next ICC meeting, scheduled to take place on October 9 in Dubai.

In a press conference at his residence yesterday evening, Papon also said that BCB would do its best to reschedule the tour as soon as possible.

"Till now I am not exactly sure what made them postpone the tour. The security plan that we provided would have been accepted by any security expert in the world.

"I believe that this issue will be better understood once we sit and have a face-to-face discussion. There is an ICC meeting on the ninth and we will talk about it in detail then," said Papon.

"They haven't scrapped the tour, they have postponed it. We have a good relationship with Cricket Australia and I am sure that we will be able to reschedule the tour as soon as possible," he added.

The BCB president also admitted that the postponement of the tour was a loss for Bangladesh cricket.

"It will definitely affect us all. I believe that the entire nation was waiting for this series. So yes, from that aspect, it is a loss for the fans, the public, for us… for everyone. Everyone has been hurt," said Papon.

When asked if he tried to get help regarding the issue from the ICC, Papon said, "I had spoken to the ICC chairman and I believe he tried to help us as well. I also spoke to Cricket Australia's president. At the end of the day, I think this is more of the Australian government's decision rather than Cricket Australia's."

Restating his disappointment Papon once again spoke of the comprehensive security measures that the BCB had planned to provide for this series.

"Terror threats are present in many countries, but does that mean we have to stop the game of cricket? Had we been unprepared for this event, then it would have been understandable, but that obviously wasn't the case.

"It's sad because in the last few months Bangladesh has been going through a very good phase," said Papon.

"In the Global Terrorism Index rankings, Bangladesh is ranked 23rd. After us is England [27th] and India is ranked sixth. So does that mean cricket won't be played in these countries? Terrorism can't stop cricket. And this is a major issue that I will be discussing in the ICC," he added.