DHAKA, March 25: Bangladesh are not in danger of losing their Test status for at least six years despite their poor record, a top official said on Saturday. “We will play more than 41 Tests and between 104 and 140 one-dayers in the next six years under the new Future Tour Programme (FTP) of the ICC,” Bangladesh Cricket Board secretary Mahbub Anam said.

Bangladesh have won just one of their 34 matches since gaining Test status in 2000, the lone victory coming against a depleted Zimbabwean side at home last year.

The cricket chiefs of the 10 Test-playing nations finalised the FTP at an ICC meeting in Dubai early this week.

The programme, under which each Test-playing nation tours and hosts other nations in a six-year cycle, will start from May.

Bangladesh have also been allowed to host at least three triangular one-day tournaments involving India during this period, Anam said, adding the country was expecting a windfall from television rights.

“We want to invite bids for television rights very soon and this time we expect to earn several times more than what we earned earlier,” he said.

The ESPN-STAR currently owns the rights to telecast Bangladesh matches, but its US$11.5m contract expires later this year.

—AFP