ISLAMABAD: The Bangladesh cricket squad has returned to Pakistan for the second leg of the bilateral series, which includes their first Test match in the country since 2003.

Bangladesh were originally scheduled to play three Twenty20 Internationals and two Test matches, but agreed to split the tour into three phases because it did not want to stay in Pakistan for a longer duration because of security concerns.

Pakistan won the T20 series 2-0 last month at Lahore, with the third game abandoned because of rain.

Bangladesh lost 3-0 to Pakistan in their last Test series here in 2003, which included the home team’s nail-biting one-wicket victory at Multan, set up by hometown hero Inzamam-ul-Haq’s brilliant 138 not out.

Leading Bangladesh player Mushfiqur Rahim, who didn’t travel to Pakistan for last month’s Twenty20 series, has also opted out of the opening Test match at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi.

The visiting squad members, who are led by recently-named new Test skipper Mominul Haque, were whisked to the team’s hotel in the federal capital amidst stringent security arrangements.

A three-member security delegation from Bangladesh, led by retired Major Hussain Imam, met with security officials from the Pakistan government and the Pakistan Cricket Board at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

The first Test, which is part of the ICC World Test Championship, starts from Friday. Bangladesh will depart next Wednesday and return to Pakistan in April for a one-off One-day International and the second and final Test at the National Stadium in Karachi.

Bangladesh are the second Test nation to tour Pakistan since the resumption of international cricket here. In December, Sri Lanka toured Pakistan for 16 days and played Test matches at Rawalpindi and Karachi in what was the first Test series in Pakistan in more than a decade after a terrorist attack on the Sri Lanka cricket team bus at Lahore left eight people killed and injured several players.

Meanwhile, the International Cricket Council has nominated former West Indies captain Sir Richie Richardson to supervise the series as the match referee for the opening Bangladesh Test.

The game’s governing body also announced England’s Nigel LIong and Chris Gaffaney of New Zealand as the on-field umpires with South Africa’s Marais Erasmus to officiate as the TV umpire.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has named Shozab Raza as the fourth umpire.

Bangladesh squad: Mominul Haque (captain), Tamim Iqbal, Mahmudullah, Soumya Sarkar, Liton Das, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Mohammad Mithun, Nayeem Hasan, Saif Hassan, Taijul Islam, Abu Jayed, Al-Amin Hossain, Rubel Hossain, Ebadot Hossain.

Head coach. Russell Domingo.

Published in Dawn, February 6th, 2020