Phil Simmons misses ODI for medical visit

Colombo

Bangladesh head coach Phil Simmons has temporarily left the team’s Sri Lanka tour for a scheduled medical consultation in London, according to reports. Simmons, who was in Colombo for the white-ball series, will miss the second ODI but is expected to return for the final match on July 8.

Despite rumours that Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Aminul Islam had called Simmons for a performance review, reports confirm his trip is purely for a doctor’s appointment.

Bangladesh is currently on a full tour of Sri Lanka. After losing the Test series 0-1, they are also trailing in the ODIs. In the first ODI, Bangladesh lost by 77 runs in a dramatic collapse. Chasing 245, they were 100 for 1 before losing seven wickets for just five runs, crashing to 107 for 8 — the worst such collapse in men’s ODI history.

Pacer Taskin Ahmed called the loss “unexpected” and admitted it was painful. Bangladesh now looks to recover in the remaining matches, including a T20I series starting July 10.