Junior Tigers to play maximum 10 matches before World Cup

Bangladesh under-19 team will play at least seven more matches before the next edition of the ICC U-19 World Cup, which will take place in the West Indies from January to mid-February, said a BCB official.

Game development manager of the Bangladesh Cricket Board, AEM Kawser told the Business Post that before the next edition of the U-19 World Cup, the junior Tigers will have enough match practice.

“We are one of the few teams to play the maximum number of matches before the (U-19) World Cup, as per my knowledge. We have already played 10 matches (five vs Afghanistan, five vs Sri Lanka), and there is a possibility of playing 10 more,” he told The Business Post.

Bangladesh U-19 team will travel to Kolkata to play a tri-series against two U-19 teams from India later this month, and then the young Tigers will play in the youth Asia Cup.

“In the India tour, we will play four matches in the group stage and a possibility for one more if we reach the final. Then in the Asia Cup, which will take place in the UAE, three group stage matches and then a chance to play in the semifinal and final will increase the number of matches. So, we will play seven to 10 matches depending on the outcomes of the matches before the World Cup,” he told TBP.

Before the 2020 U-19 World Cup mission, the Bangladesh U-19 team played a number of matches at home and abroad.

They played a tri-series in England where the oppositions were India and England where each team faced the other oppositions four times, then they played in the U-19 Asia Cup and toured New Zealand.

But due to the covid situation, the BCB couldn’t arrange so many matches to defend the title, but Kawser believes that the preparation is adequate.

“We have played many matches among ourselves before playing with Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, we will play some more matches in the coming days. Due to covid situation, we could not arrange like the way we did for the previous edition, but so far I know we are playing the most number of matches before the next Youth World Cup,” he said.