The Bangladesh Cricket Board has taken a fresh step to improve cricket grounds in the country. The new ad hoc committee wants to bring three old venues back to international cricket.
Grounds committee chairman Rafiqul Islam Babu said they will act fast to restore three venues. These are the Shaheed Chandu Stadium in Bogura, the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna, and the Khan Shaheb Osman Ali Stadium in Fatullah.
These grounds were once used for international matches. But they stayed unused for a long time and lost their status.
Shaheed Chandu Stadium last hosted a men’s international match in 2006. Bangladesh played a Test against the Sri Lanka national cricket team there. A few women’s matches were held later. After that, no international games took place.
Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium last hosted an international match in 2016. Bangladesh played a T20I against the Zimbabwe national cricket team. Since then, it has only hosted some local matches.
The Fatullah ground last staged an international match in 2014. Bangladesh played an ODI against the Afghanistan national cricket team there.
Babu said, “These grounds were once important venues in international cricket. But they lost recognition due to long periods without matches. Now we need more venues. So we will work to bring them back to the international stage.”
He said they will not just repair the grounds. They will also improve facilities, prepare good wickets, and add modern support.
If the plan works, Bangladesh will have more venues. It will also help the country host more international matches.
