But, at a meeting in Colombo, the ACC said that Bangladesh would remain hosts and that Afghanistan would join the event, making it a five-team competition.

"It will be held in Bangladesh as scheduled and Afghanistan has been added as the fifth team," ACC chief executive Syed Ashraful Huq told Reuters.

Bangladesh Cricket Board's acting chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury added:

"As of now, the decision has been made that Bangladesh will retain hosting rights of the Asia Cup.

"We had a good meeting with ACC Board members, and they have been convinced that we can host the tournament.

"Afghanistan has also been added to the tournament, making it a five-team event and the number of matches has gone up to 11."

The tournament was in jeopardy following civil unrest in Bangladesh which saw opposition activists burning polling material during the general election on Sunday ©Getty images



The tournament had been under threat following unrest in Bangladesh ahead of the country's Parliamentary election tomorrow.

The main opposition party - the Bangladesh Nationalist Party - boycotted the election after leader Khaleda Zia labelling it a "scandalous farce" while nearly 60 polling stations were set on fire.

Last month the West Indies Under-19s team pulled out of a tour following an explosion near the team's hotel, while Sri Lanka Cricket is still awaiting an internal security investigation before committing to their upcoming bi-lateral tour.

There is also some doubt over whether Bangladesh will host the World Twenty20, which is due to begin on March 16.

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