Zimbabwe to tour Bangladesh for tri-series in September

Zimbabwe are set to play in a T20I tri-series in Bangladesh - with Afghanistan as the third team - next month, which will be their first assignment since the ICC suspended them last month. The series was part of Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) schedule for the 2019-20 season, and they waited till Wednesday evening for confirmation from Zimbabwe Cricket. The series was meant to have given Zimbabwe preparation for the World T20 qualifiers later this year from which they were removed on Tuesday.

Bangladesh's 2019-20 home season will open with their maiden Test against Afghanistan, in Chattogram from September 5 to 9, before they play the tri-series from September 13 to 24. The double-league phase will be played in Dhaka and Chattogram, with the final to be held in Dhaka on September 24.

"We are holding the tri-series as planned," said BCB CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury. "We had to wait till now for them to confirm their participation. The ICC has clearly stated that they are allowed to play against member boards."

Cricday has learned that additional ODIs against Zimbabwe, following the T20I tri-series, have not been ruled out by the BCB. These matches, or even a single ODI, could well be Mashrafe Mortaza's farewell from international cricket, but talks of a fitting send-off are still on within the BCB.