Smith disappointed with B’desh tour cancellation

Cricket Australia took the decision to cancel the two-Test tour after the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade warned that Australian interests could be threatened in Bangladesh, news.com.au reported on Thursday.  The tour to Bangladesh would have been Smith’s first as captain and it was also an opportunity for several players to force their way into a new-look team. Most importantly, it would have given the team some much needed exposure to subcontinental conditions.

“It would have been a great opportunity for all these guys to come together and play some cricket in subcontinental conditions, where we haven’t done so well,” Smith said. “It would have been a great opportunity for all of us to try and improve our skills over there, which would have been a great challenge for us,” he said. The cancellation of the Bangladesh tour also leaves Australia with little exposure to the longer version of the game before New Zealand arrive for the summer. It would have also been Smith’s first experience of leading the team in a Test series as a <g data-gr-id="30">full time</g> captain.

“It was my first Test series as <g data-gr-id="23">full time</g> captain, it was a new team with some new players and we were all really looking forward to getting over there and playing. It’s extremely disappointing,” Smith said. It means Australia’s Test stars have returned to their states to take part in the domestic tournament.