Bangladesh Threatens Withdrawal From T20 World Cup After ICC Ignores venue Change Plea

Bangladesh had reiterated its request to the ICC to move its T20 World Cup matches from India to Sri Lanka, citing serious security concerns for its players.

Bangladesh’s Sports Advisor Asif Nazrul has strongly backed the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) demand to shift all of the country’s T20 World Cup matches from India to Sri Lanka, citing serious concerns over player safety and national dignity. He said the BCB would continue discussions with the International Cricket Council (ICC) to underline the gravity of the situation.

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Nazrul referred to a recent communication from the ICC that followed a call between the global body and the BCB on Tuesday.

“Today, after reading the letter from the ICC, we understand that the ICC doesn’t fully realize the scale of the security issue regarding Bangladeshi cricketers in India. I believe it’s not only a matter of security but also that of national humiliation. We are looking at it as a security issue, where the BCCI itself is telling the Kolkata [Knight Riders] team that this player can’t be given security, [so] leave him out from your team. This in itself is a tacit recognition that it isn’t very safe to play in India.” Nazrul was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

Bangladesh Tough On Their Stance on World Cup Venue

As per the current schedule, Bangladesh are set to play their first three group-stage matches of the T20 World Cup in Kolkata, with their final group match scheduled in Mumbai. The issue escalated after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) instructed Kolkata Knight Riders to remove Bangladeshi pacer Mustafizur Rahman from their squad for IPL 2026, amid worsening diplomatic relations between the two nations.

In response, the Bangladesh government banned the broadcast of the IPL in the country, while the BCB formally informed the ICC that the national team would not play its World Cup matches in India. The ICC held discussions with the BCB on Tuesday, following which the board issued a statement denying reports of receiving any ultimatum from the governing body and confirmed that talks would continue. However, Nazrul later reiterated Bangladesh’s firm position.

“We don’t want to say anything about the bigger picture, the communal situation in India. But when it comes to our cricketers’ safety, Bangladesh’s safety, and Bangladesh’s dignity, we won’t make any compromise. We want to play cricket, we want to play the World Cup – but we want to play in Sri Lanka, which is the other host country,” he said.