The controversy that erupted on Saturday with the ouster of Mustafizur Rahman from the IPL turned into a full blown crisis a day later, with the Bangladesh Sports Adviser Asif Nazrul posting on social media that he commends the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) decision to not sending the Bangladesh cricket team to India for the upcoming T20 World Cup. Nazrul had earlier written that he’d request the I&B ministry to stop the telecast of the IPL matches in India.
“An emergency meeting of the Board of Directors of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) was held this afternoon to discuss recent developments related to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, scheduled to be hosted by India and Sri Lanka,” the BCB said in a press release.
It added: “The Board reviewed the situation in detail, taking into account developments over the last 24 hours and expressed deep concern over the overall circumstances surrounding the participation of the Bangladesh National Team in matches scheduled to be played in India.
“Following a thorough assessment of the prevailing situation and the growing concerns regarding the safety and security of the Bangladesh contingent in India and considering the advice from the Bangladesh Government, the Board of Directors resolved that the Bangladesh National Team will not travel to India for the tournament under the current conditions.
“In light of this decision, the BCB has formally requested the International Cricket Council (ICC), as the event authority, to consider relocating all of Bangladesh’s matches to a venue outside India.
“The Board believes that such a step is necessary to safeguard the safety and well-being of Bangladeshi players, team officials, Board members and other stakeholders and to ensure that the team can participate in the tournament in a secure and appropriate environment.
“The Bangladesh Cricket Board looks forward to the ICC’s understanding of the situation and an urgent response on this matter.”
The ball is now firmly in the ICC’s court. With the tournament just a month away will the ICC go ahead and move the games or will the tournament be staged without Bangladesh? The important thing here is the decision has the backing of the Bangladesh government and has cited security concerns. In such a situation, the ICC might find it hard to move on without Bangladesh and that’s what will now make the issue more complicated.
If the games are relocated to Sri Lanka, it could well be a logistical challenge for everyone. The broadcast of the tournament was planned in a manner that two games would be staged in India and one in Sri Lanka on a given day. Now, if two games have to be staged in Sri Lanka on some days, it will mean a complete rejig of the broadcast plans.
While the ICC hasn’t yet spoken on the matter, it can be surmised that economically it isn’t a blow for them. Bangladesh games won’t generate much revenue so that’s not something the ICC will be worried about. What will challenge the ICC, however, is how they will go on with the organisation if the games are to be moved to Sri Lanka. Also, what about the March 1 Super 8 game at Eden Gardens? If Bangladesh win against the West Indies what will happen to that game is also a question that is up in the air.
Clearly, we haven’t seen the end of the issue and over the next few days much will indeed be said and written on the matter. Suffice to say that Jay Shah, the ICC chair and the game’s governing body have the first challenge of 2026 on their hands as the Bangladesh political establishment continues with their hardline stance without wanting to introspect and look inward.
