Hathurusingha not happy with Tigers' preparation for Ireland series

Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusingha said he was not satisfied with the preparation that the Tigers got ahead of their series against Ireland starting on Today at Chelmsford in England.

It wasn't quite the obvious reason – the players—but the conditions in England-- a neutral venue for Ireland's home series against Bangladesh—that bothered the Sri Lankan coach as his plans for preparation were somewhat hampered due to rain.

The 54-year-old even went as far as saying that he wouldn't have agreed to play the series if he had known the schedule beforehand that accommodated the matches at the end of spring and the beginning of summer in England. This period usually brings rain showers often incessantly making it difficult to get onto the field.  

"It is a unique situation. We are playing Ireland in England. So normally it doesn't happen too often. I can't blame anyone. It is the first time. If we knew this is the case, we wouldn't have agreed to this kind of schedule.

This is not ideal preparation. I won't blame anyone. We will learn from this one," Hathurusingha told the reporters on the eve of the first ODI at Chelmsford.

Hathurusingha's troops were able to train in two practice sessions at the Leys Cricket Ground in Cambridge but their only tour match against the Ireland Wolves was washed out due to rain. The Tigers were scheduled for another session at the venue but that too had to be cancelled for the same reason.

On Monday, Tamim Iqbal and Co were able to train at the match venue in Chelmsford for the very first time. Players were able to hit the nets, both indoors and outdoors, and a few sweated it out in the gym to brush off any kind of rust ahead of their first match.