The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Thursday, 20 October announced the schedule for India’s tour of Bangladesh, which will begin with three ODIs from 4 December to be held at the Sher-E-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka.
After the end of the ODIs, India will play two Tests against Bangladesh, firstly at Chattogram from 14 to 18 December at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, and then the second Test at the Sher-E-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Dhaka.
After the tour ends, India will depart Bangladesh on 27 December.
Both Tests are a part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) cycle, where India are currently placed fourth with 52.08 percentage points.
Bangladesh, on the other hand, are in the last position in the championship table with 13.33 percentage points.
This will be the first time that India will tour Bangladesh since 2015. In that tour in 2015, the lone Test ended as a draw while Bangladesh emerged victorious in the ODI series 2-1.
In an official statement, BCB President Nazmul Hassan felt thrilled about the prospect of multi-format meetings between the two sides in December.
"The Bangladesh-India matches in recent history have given us some epic contests and fans from both countries are eagerly waiting for another memorable series. I thank the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for working closely with the BCB in confirming the schedule. We look forward to welcoming the Indian team to Bangladesh."
BCCI Secretary Jay Shah echoed the same sentiment as expressed by Hassan. "I extend my best wishes to the Bangladesh Cricket Board for the upcoming bilateral series featuring India. The India-Bangladesh contests generate tremendous interest among the fans thanks to the massive fan following the two teams enjoy"
"We know how passionate the fans in Bangladesh are and I am sure they will be treated to some exhilarating contests both in white-ball and red-ball cricket. With the crucial World Test Championship points at stake, the two Test matches are very important and both teams will go hard for the win."
India Tour of Bangladesh Itinerary: 4 Dec: 1st ODI, Dhaka; 7 Dec: 2nd ODI, Dhaka; 10 Dec: 3rd ODI, Dhaka; 14-18 Dec: 1st Test, Chattogram; 22-26 Dec: 2nd Test, Dhaka.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)