Bangladesh to host New Zealand in September for five T20Is

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has confirmed to host New Zealand for a T20I series in September. The announcement was made official on Wednesday (August 4). This news comes after both Bangladesh and England boards pulling out of the limited-over series scheduled to have taken place on September in Bangladesh. But instead, the Blackcaps will now face Asian team in a five-match T20I series.

These matches will be crucial for both teams, as they will look to finalize the core of the squad ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. New Zealand will arrive in Dhaka on August 24 and undergo a mandatory quarantine, before the five T20Is commence. The Kiwis will play a warm-up match on August 29, before the first T20I game scheduled to be held on September 1. All five matches will be played in Dhaka due to COVID-19 norms.

Currently, Bangladesh is hosting Australia for five-match T20I series which is set to conclude on August 9. Meanwhile, New Zealand is enjoying its break after finishing the World Test Championship (WTC) Final against India on June 23 in Southampton. Now the Blackcaps will get to play few T20 matches and get some much-needed preparation time before the global event set to be held in Oman and UAE.

The series is set to conclude on September 10, just nine days before the IPL resumes in the UAE. Few New Zealand players such as Kane Williamson, Trent Boult, and Kyle Jamieson are part of the IPL and will be looking to make the most of the series against Bangladesh and as well in the IPL. The Kiwis last visited Bangladesh eight years ago when the home team won the ODI series 3:0.