Mash tells England to come and play cricket

While the British newspaper cast further doubt over England’s upcoming tour to Bangladesh, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza has quelled the fear, ensuring that the government and BCB would do everything for a smooth visit of the England team here.

The security concerns, according to the report published on The Telegraph's website late on Monday, was with travel within the cities of Dhaka and Chittagong rather than the hotels where the team will stay or the grounds where they will play.
The England cricket team will be given a briefing today by a three-man security team that departed Bangladesh last week, and it is understood that the tour may hinge on the briefing.
Mashrafe, the ODI and T20 captain of Bangladesh believed England should visit Bangladesh for a two-Test and three-ODI series in October as scheduled.
“I would firstly tell them to come here. I still believe that they are going to come to Bangladesh. The government and the BCB will provide security like they do for all visiting teams,” Mashrafe told the reporters at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium yesterday.
“As a player I would urge for cricket to continue. These incidents are happening all over the world and if we postpone playing now, there will be a time when we would have to stop the game. We all have to keep our faith on the ECB team that visited recently as well as the two boards.”
England and Wales Cricket Board’s chief security officer, Reg Dickason, flew back from Dhaka at the weekend after a fortnight’s inspection of India and Bangladesh, along with the ECB’s head of cricket operations, John Carr, and the chief executive of the Professional Cricketers Association, David Leatherdale.
The three-man delegation was given many assurances of security by the BCB and the country’s home ministry ahead of the tour.
It is understood that Dickason’s chief concern is not so much the hotels where England will be staying in Dhaka and Chittagong, or the grounds in those two cities, as they can be cordoned off by the police and military.
The most potentially dangerous parts of a cricket tour are the journeys from the airport to the team hotel, and from the team hotel to the ground, especially in crowded Asian cities where it is humanly impossible to secure all the buildings overlooking the roads.
“They can speak about something that they feel needs to be addressed. I don't know in what context this was talked about but I think that we have the ability to transport the players safely. I think the BCB can handle this quite well, since this is not a very difficult job,” Mashrafe said.
Recalling the England’s support to Bangladesh in the past, Mashrafe believed the ECB would not disappoint the country.
“England has been with us from day one and I believe they will be with us now as well. They sent their team to the U19 World Cup.”
 “It is not just about the game. There are a lot of things connected to this series. We are hoping that they would come here to play. From what I have heard, our security forces are giving it the highest attention. I have confidence in them since we have hosted many big tournaments in the recent past.”
The Bangladesh captain also saw a role of the players’ association in this regard.
 “I think steps can be taken through our players association, because it does have an impact. Maybe our players' body isn't the strongest but I still feel that if there's an opportunity, we can venture into that avenue too. A lot is at stake here.”
He however had sent a message to the English players: “To each and every player I would say, you should come. I can assure you that you can play cricket wholeheartedly. You don't have to think of anything else. It will be a competitive series. Our friendship will get deeper if we play in this series.”

Mash tells England to come and play cricket

While the British newspaper cast further doubt over Englands upcoming tour to Bangladesh, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza has quelled the fear, ensuring that the government and BCB would do everything for a smooth visit of the England team here. The security concerns, according to the report published on The Telegraphs website late on Monday, was with travel within the cities of Dhaka and Chittagong rather than the hotels where the team will stay or the grounds where they will play. The England cricket team will be given a briefing today by a three-man security team that departed Bangladesh last week, and it is understood that the tour may hinge on the briefing. Mashrafe, the ODI and T20 captain of Bangladesh believed England should visit Bangladesh for a two-Test and three-ODI series in October as scheduled. I would firstly tell them to come here. I still believe that they are going to come to Bangladesh. The government and the BCB will provide security like they do for all visiting teams, Mashrafe told the reporters at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium yesterday. As a player I would urge for cricket to continue. These incidents are happening all over the world and if we postpone playing now, there will be a time when we would have to stop the game. We all have to keep our faith on the ECB team that visited recently as well as the two boards. England and Wales Cricket Boards chief security officer, Reg Dickason, flew back from Dhaka at the weekend after a fortnights inspection of India and Bangladesh, along with the ECBs head of cricket operations, John Carr, and the chief executive of the Professional Cricketers Association, David Leatherdale. The three-man delegation was given many assurances of security by the BCB and the countrys home ministry ahead of the tour. It is understood that Dickasons chief concern is not so much the hotels where England will be staying in Dhaka and Chittagong, or the grounds in those two cities, as they can be cordoned off by the police and military. The most potentially dangerous parts of a cricket tour are the journeys from the airport to the team hotel, and from the team hotel to the ground, especially in crowded Asian cities where it is humanly impossible to secure all the buildings overlooking the roads. They can speak about something that they feel needs to be addressed. I dont know in what context this was talked about but I think that we have the ability to transport the players safely. I think the BCB can handle this quite well, since this is not a very difficult job, Mashrafe said. Recalling the Englands support to Bangladesh in the past, Mashrafe believed the ECB would not disappoint the country. England has been with us from day one and I believe they will be with us now as well. They sent their team to the U19 World Cup. It is not just about the game. There are a lot of things connected to this series. We are hoping that they would come here to play. From what I have heard, our security forces are giving it the highest attention. I have confidence in them since we have hosted many big tournaments in the recent past. The Bangladesh captain also saw a role of the players association in this regard. I think steps can be taken through our players association, because it does have an impact. Maybe our players body isnt the strongest but I still feel that if theres an opportunity, we can venture into that avenue too. A lot is at stake here. He however had sent a message to the English players: To each and every player I would say, you should come. I can assure you that you can play cricket wholeheartedly. You dont have to think of anything else. It will be a competitive series. Our friendship will get deeper if we play in this series.