Hampshire all-rounder Liam Dawson back in Bangladesh for BPL
Monday 31 October 2016 12:57, UK
England all-rounder Liam Dawson is set to return to Bangladesh this week to play for Rangpur Riders.
Dawson is a late addition to the Riders' squad in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), having recently returned from England's successful one-day international tour of the country, for the tournament which runs from November 4 until December 9.
England's trip received the go-ahead only after unprecedented security arrangements were put in place following a deadly terror attack on a Dhaka cafe in July.
Professional Cricketers' Association chief executive David Leatherdale subsequently published official advice to all English cricketers to stay away from the BPL because the players' union cannot guarantee the appropriate level of security cover will be available for the Twenty20 domestic competition.
Several of Dawson's compatriots have already signed up, however, including former England players Ravi Bopara and Samit Patel, the latter explaining he is satisfied with assurances form the Bangladesh Cricket Board that participants will be afforded the same security as Jos Buttler and Alastair Cook's international teams were for three ODIs and two Tests in the country.
Dawson will be joining a familiar face in Rangpur captain Shahid Afridi, who played alongside him for Hampshire during this year's NatWest T20 Blast, in a tournament which will feature international stars such as Chris Gayle and Kumar Sangakkara.
In a Hampshire press release, the 26-year-old left-arm spinner said: "I'm really looking forward to joining up with Rangpur Riders.
"The competition starts in just a few days, and Shahid Afridi is in the team too, so it'll be good to go into the team and know him from his time here at Hampshire.
"It's going to be a good challenge. There's some very good overseas players in the competition, so it'll be hard work from a cricket point of view, but I hope I can put in some good performances and do myself proud."
