The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) are working on a three-match T20I series in the United Arab Emirates, pencilled in for October. Although the exact dates are still under discussion, both boards hope to squeeze the games in after the Asia Cup, which is due to finish in late September, and before Bangladesh welcome West Indies for six white-ball fixtures from the third week of October.
If the plan holds, it will complete the back-half of a tour that was originally scheduled for July 2024 as a full-format affair – two Tests, three ODIs and three T20Is. Heavy monsoon forecasts and a diary already crammed with commitments forced both boards to cut that trip down to white-ball cricket in Greater Noida, only for it to be postponed altogether. The ODI leg eventually went ahead last November; Afghanistan edged that 2–1.
Officials on both sides confirm that talks are ongoing. One senior BCB figure said, “We want those matches because they fit neatly into our T20 World Cup build-up.” An ACB administrator echoed the sentiment, adding, “Neutral venues help us keep playing high-quality cricket.” Neither wished to be named while negotiations continue.
Two Tests from the abandoned 2024 tour remain on the agenda. Discussions are focused on slipping them into next year’s window once the Future Tours Programme starts to loosen.
For Bangladesh, the proposed October T20Is offer a timely tune-up before the 2026 T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka. Head coach Chandika Hathurusinghe has spoken often about the need for “more cricket under pressure”, and these contests should supply exactly that. Afghanistan, meanwhile, have a gap between the Asia Cup and a full tour of Zimbabwe later in October, so the UAE stop-over suits them as well.
The sides have not met in a T20I since their dramatic World Cup clash in Kingstown last June, when Afghanistan’s nerveless finish secured a historic semi-final berth. Rashid Khan later reflected, “Moments like that lift the whole country – we’ll never forget it.”
Assuming the UAE fixtures receive formal sign-off, Afghanistan’s path to the 2026 global tournament will read: Asia Cup, Bangladesh in UAE, Zimbabwe away, then three T20Is each against West Indies and New Zealand. Bangladesh’s own schedule stays crowded but coherent: Asia Cup, West Indies at home, and, if the boards can agree, those long-awaited Tests somewhere in 2026.
Nothing is locked in yet, but all parties appear keen. A final confirmation is expected once venue availability and broadcast slots line up – the usual jigsaw.
