LONDON: Eoin Morgan and Alex Hales made themselves unavailable for England’s upcoming cricket tour of Bangladesh because of their security concerns.
The England and Wales Cricket Board made the announcement on Sunday, with director of cricket Andrew Strauss saying England “respect and understand” the players’ decision but was “disappointed.”
Morgan is captain of the one-day international team and Hales is an opener for both the test and ODI teams.
The ECB undertook a full assessment of facilities and operations in Bangladesh last month, in the wake of an attack in Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, in July by radical Islamists that left 20 people dead.
“We have had open and honest conversations with all the players about the security arrangements in Bangladesh and at this stage we are not expecting any other individuals to withdraw from the tour,” Strauss said.
The squad will be selected on Friday, with Jos Buttler replacing Morgan as ODI captain. The team departs on Sept. 29 and will play three ODIs and two tests, in Dhaka and Chittagong, from Oct. 7 to Nov. 1.
Morgan spoke about his concerns last week, citing his previous experience of security alerts in India and Bangladesh.
“As with all England overseas tours, the safety and security of players and staff is of the utmost importance to ECB,” Strauss said. “We will continue to monitor the situation in Bangladesh, take advice and consider the appropriate steps up to and throughout the five weeks we are on tour.”
India retains struggling Sharma for Kiwi Tests
India have kept faith with Rohit Sharma, on Monday naming the out-of-form middle-order batsman in a 15-man squad for the home Test series against New Zealand beginning later this month.
The 29-year-old Mumbai batsman last scored a Test century nearly three years ago against the West Indies.
On India’s recent tour of West Indies, Sharma, who averages 32.62 from 18 Tests, scored nine and 41 in the only match that he played in the four-Test series.
“Rohit is a fabulous player, with immense talent,” chief selector Sandeep Patil told reporters in Mumbai.
“We have stuck to the combination which has done very well for us. We were of the opinion that this was the best possible combination for New Zealand.”
The selectors retained 15 of the 17 players who toured the West Indies, where India won the Test series 2-0, with allrounder Stuart Binny and seamer Shardul Thakur the two to miss out.
The series against New Zealand marks the beginning of a busy season that will see India play 13 home Tests between now and March next year.
The first Test against New Zealand begins in the northern city of Kanpur on Sept. 22. The second Test is in Kolkate and the three-Test series finishes in Indore.
India squad: Shikhar Dhawan, Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Virat Kohli (captain), Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha (wicketkeeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Amit Mishra, Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
Morgan, Hales won’t tour Bangladesh over security concerns
