BD U-19 start training for Afghan series

Bangladesh Under-19 started their camp in Sylhet ahead of the Afghanistan Under-19 side's tour of the country for five one-dayers and one four-day match. 

Although the camp was scheduled to start on August 16, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) had earlier mentioned that it had pushed the start of the camp a day or two in order to reduce the cubs' bubble stress. 

Bangladesh Under-19 coach Naveed Nawaz, who led the previous batch of Akbar Ali and Co to the country's maiden World Cup glory, remained hopeful of repeating the feat with the new batch. 

"We started the camp in Sylhet two days ago. Things are going well and everyone is very keen because we had a lot of stops and starts due to the Covid situation. But we are very positive that we can train these boys and prepare them for the World Cup," said Naveed in a video message to the BCB today.

Nawaz also mentioned making some adjustments to the team, if required, by assessing players during the Afghanistan series.  

"Hopefully we will play Afghanistan in September and the boys will get some match experience. We also can gauge how the team will perform, make accommodations moving forward and prepare well for the World Cup," Naveed added. 

The Afghanistan contingent is scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on August 31 and will later travel to Sylhet via a connecting flight. All the matches of the series are scheduled to take place in Sylhet.