Rain greets England in Dhaka

The England team arrived in rain-drenched Bangladesh today for their month-long tour, which includes two Tests and three one-day internationals. Officials of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) greeted the team at Dhaka's Zia International Airport upon their arrival aboard an Emirates flight.

England, without the injured Lancastrian duo of Andrew Flintoff and James Anderson, will face a Bangladesh team buoyed by an improved display during their recent tour of Pakistan. They put up a tough fight against Pakistan, coming within one wicket of registering their first Test victory in the third Test at Multan.

Michael Vaughan, leading England on tour for the first time, told reporters on arrival that he was looking forward to a good series and will not be underestimating the home side. "In their last Tests, Bangladesh played positive cricket against top-class teams like Australia and Pakistan," he said. "We will not take them lightly."

Bangladesh, who were granted Test status in 2000, have lost 23 of their 24 Tests to date. The only draw came in a rain-hit match against Zimbabwe. They have also gone 44 one-day internationals without recordiung a win, since their surprise victory over Pakistan in the 1999 World Cup.

The Test series starts in Dhaka on Oct 21. After the Bangladesh leg of the tour, which ends on Nov 12, England go on to Sri Lanka for three more Tests and three ODIs.