Ireland, Bangladesh agree to postpone tour amid coronavirus pandemic

The Cricket Ireland and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Saturday agreed to postpone the seven-match men's series which was scheduled to be played in May 2020.

The Cricket Ireland and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Saturday agreed to postpone the seven-match men's series which was scheduled to be played in May 2020. The tour involved four T20 Internationals and three One-Day Internationals.

Acknowledging the development, Chief Executive of Cricket Ireland, Warren Deutrom in an official statement said, "Once the scale of the COVID-19 pandemic was understood, and the advice of both Governments and partner boards was sought, it became increasingly unlikely that this series could proceed as scheduled." "We would like to thank the Bangladesh Cricket Board for their helpful cooperation in reaching this decision, and we shall work with them at establishing new dates for the series when we are all in a position to plan for the future with greater certainty," he added.

Many sporting events across the globe have been affected by the novel coronavirus and as a preventive measure all the upcoming tournaments/competitions are either postponed or canceled Earlier on March 16, Cricket Ireland had postponed the six-match men's series against Zimbabwe.

Meanwhile, the BCB have instructed their employees to work remotely from March 22 until further notice. On March 19, the BCB had postponed all matches of the ongoing Bangabandhu DPDCL 2019-20 up to Round five due to 'unavoidable circumstances'. (ANI)