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Dubai: In view of the possibility of the World Twenty20 being relocated from Bangladesh due to political turmoil, Cricket South Africa (CSA) could, on Thursday, propose to the International Cricket Council (ICC) to host the prestigious tournament in March-April.
ICC has called an emergent meeting of all the competing countries in the World T20 in Dubai on Thursday to discuss the political situation in Bangladesh after Sunday's violence-hit Parliament elections, even as the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan said his country would host all the scheduled cricket events.
Hassan, who has reached Dubai for the ICC meeting, said the BCB has submitted to the ICC a revised security plan for the World T20, to be held from March 16-April 6. He said the BCB would also be hosting the Sri Lankan team for a bilateral series this month and the Asia Cup next month as per the schedule.
The BCB president confirmed an ICC security team is scheduled to visit Bangladesh on January 20 to assess the current situation.
"Yes, we would be hosting not only the World T20, but also the Sri Lankan team this month for Tests and ODIs (January 27-February 22) and the Asia Cup (February 25-March 8). We don't have any problem in hosting them all. Cricket is always kept out of politics in Bangladesh," Hassan told Mail Today from Dubai.
"The situation is improving in Bangladesh every day, and I think in seven to ten days, it would become normal. The trouble was, anyway, in the northern side, so it hasn't affected the three venues for the World T20 — Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet. And, March is a long time away."
Hassan disclosed that the ICC would, on Thursday, discuss an updated special plan prepared by the Bangladesh security agencies for the World T20.
"We have sent a security plan to the ICC and that has been distributed to all the member countries. The ICC has asked its members that if anyone has any suggestion, he could visit Dhaka and discuss those there (on January 20)," he revealed.
"We don't know who all are coming." Hassan, however, sounded confident that Bangladesh would host the World T20 on schedule.
"The tickets have been sold and the preparations have been going on. So, it is very difficult to change the venue now," he said. "But if something happens in future, you can't say." Hassan said the special ICC meeting was a "technical" one and that the heads of the ICC member countries have been invited, though they are free to send their representatives, if they so wish.
Sources, however, said that South Africa could submit the proposal to the ICC on Thursday and that CSA CEO Haroon Lorgat has also reached Dubai.
But since BCCI president N. Srinivasan too is in Dubai for the meeting, there is a possibility that Lorgat may not actually sit in the meeting, given their frosty relationship, though it is not exactly an ICC executive board meeting.
Sri Lanka is already been touted as a possible alternate venue, were the World T20 to be relocated.
