India will not host Asia XI-World XI matches

India will not host any of the matches between Asia XI and World XI, organised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to mark the 100th birth anniversary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Board of Control for Cricket in India [BCCI] president Sourav Ganguly had planned to have one of the two matches of the series at Sardar Patel Stadium, currently under construction in Ahmedabad, to mark the inauguration of the venue.

According to BCB CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury, the construction of the stadium will not be completed in time to host one of the matches. BCB has planned to hold both matches – which will have T20I status -- on March 18 and 22 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur.

“A match was expected to be played in India as they were expected to inaugurate a big stadium but now, they [BCCI] are not ready to do it and both matches will be hosted here,’’ Chowdhury told reporters Stadium in Mirpur yesterday.

The board is planning to invite legends of the game to attend the matches to add to the significance of the occasion.

“We are open to inviting everyone. We will definitely invite the high-ups of the cricket world, dignitaries who are in the ICC [International Cricket Council] and other important positions. Also, we will try to bring cricketing legends of different eras. We will try to make all the necessary measurements to make the event colourful.

“We are communicating with almost everyone. As I said, we are contacting every player in our list. There are a few complications that we need to work on. There are some cases where there is a series starting during or right after the event. In those cases, we are working on how we can ensure their participation,’’ he said.