England's players have been "given assurances about the scale of the security operation" which will see them put on "lock down" in Bangladesh with snipers positioned at the team hotels and tanks parked outside them, according to Sam Peters of the London DAILY MAIL. The majority of England's players have "agreed to tour after agonising over whether to travel to a country where westerners have been terrorist targets in recent years and the Australia team refused to tour last October over fears of an attack." England & Wales Cricket Board security expert Reg Dickason has also told players he does not believe claims made by former England batsman and Bangladesh Performance coach Mal Loye that "a specific threat was made against the Australia team are credible." Covert sniper teams will be positioned around the team hotels, "whose staff will be individually vetted as part of a process aimed at minimising any risk to the players and support staff in a country which has seen a rise in violent extremism in recent times." Players will not be permitted to leave team hotels, apart from for training and on match days, with the team coach "set to be closely guarded by Bangladesh police" (DAILY MAIL, 9/10).
