Bangladesh will tour Pakistan for a T20I series starting on May 28.
Bangladesh pacer Nahid Rana has decided to withdraw from the upcoming Pakistan tour after witnessing severe border tensions during the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2025. Their fielding coach, James Pamment, and strength and conditioning coach Nathan Keily have also pulled out of the tour alongside Rana.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chairperson, Nazmul Abedeen Fahim, has spoken about the recent situation faced by the two Bangladeshi players who went to Pakistan to participate in the PSL 2025. Rana was representing the Peshawar Zalmi while his fellow countryman Rishad Hossain was in the Lahore Qalandars squad.
However, after the Pahalgam incident in late April, border tensions between the two neighbouring countries started to escalate. They faced severe difficulties in leaving Pakistan after the tournament was suspended for a week amidst political conflicts.
“What Nahid Rana and Rishad faced recently, you can’t blame them for being traumatised. Which is probably why Rana has withdrawn from the tour. Among the coaching staff, James and Nathan, who are our fielding coach and trainer, aren’t going,” said Fahim to ESPN Cricinfo.
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Though Rana has reportedly pulled out from the tour due to this reason, Rishad and the other players have agreed to visit Pakistan for the upcoming three-match series.
“The rest are ready to go there. There were hesitations among few other players. But later, when they saw others are going, they felt that it might not be difficult to go there and they changed their initial position,” he added.
Previously, the tour was decided for a five-match T20I series starting on May 21. However, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) rescheduled the series due to the recent border conflicts.
Bangladesh will now tour the country for a three-match 20-over series. They recently endured a tough 2-1 series loss against the UAE (United Arab Emirates). The Pakistan tour will kick off on May 28, followed by two fixtures on May 30 and June 1. All three matches will be played in Lahore.
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