Mortaza urges England players to tour Bangladesh

Dhaka, Aug 24 (ANI): Amid growing security concerns in Bangladesh, limited-overs captain Mashrafe Mortaza has urged the England players not to skip the forthcoming series, insisting that a deeper bond can be developed if the October tour goes ahead. The security concerns have sharply risen in the country since last month's terror attack in Dhaka, which killed 20 hostages, including nine Italians. Having completed a security assessment recently ahead of England's tour to subcontinent, a three-member ECB delegation is set to brief the one-day team regarding the situation on Thursday. "I would tell all the players to come to Bangladesh," Mashrafe was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. "I can assure you that you can play cricket here wholeheartedly. You don't have to think of anything else. It will be a competitive series. Our friendship will get deeper if we play in this series. It is not just about the game. There are a lot of things connected to this series. "We are hoping that they would come here to play. From what I have heard, our security forces are giving it the highest attention. I have confidence in them since we have hosted many big tournaments in the recent past. "As a player I would urge for cricket to continue. These incidents are happening all over the world and if we postpone playing now, there will be a time when we would have to stop the game. We all have to keep our faith on the ECB team that visited recently as well as the two boards." Meanwhile, England captain Eoin Morgan stated that his side's player will be given the option to decide whether they want to tour Bangladesh. England will play a three-match ODI series and two Tests in Bangladesh, starting from October 7 at Sher-e-Bangla in Dhaka. (ANI)