The Bangladesh government is set to decide on the national team’s participation in the upcoming T20 World Cup at a cabinet meeting scheduled for Thursday, January 22. India Today has learnt that government officials will also seek the views of Bangladesh cricketers before taking a final call.
On Wednesday, January 21, the International Cricket Council (ICC) gave Bangladesh 24 hours to confirm its position on the matter after rejecting the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) request to shift its matches out of India. The ICC maintained that there was no security threat to the Bangladesh team.
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Later that evening, BCB president Nazmul Hassan, along with a group of board directors, met Bangladesh sports adviser Asif Nazrul at his residence to discuss the issue. Reports state that Nazrul, who has previously made controversial remarks about India, will meet members of the national team at 3 pm local time on Thursday to hear their views on participating in the tournament.
In an official statement released on Wednesday, the ICC reiterated that the men’s T20 World Cup 2026 will go ahead as planned, dismissing security concerns raised by the BCB. The tournament, co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, is scheduled to begin on February 7.
Bangladesh are slated to play three of their four league-stage matches in Kolkata and one in Mumbai. Earlier this month, following Mustafizur Rahman’s exit from the Indian Premier League, the BCB formally requested the ICC to relocate Bangladesh’s matches to Sri Lanka. However, the governing body turned down the request after reviewing multiple security assessments.
ICC has warned Bangladesh that failure to confirm participation within the stipulated time frame could result in their replacement by Scotland.
“The ICC today confirmed that the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will proceed as scheduled with Bangladesh’s matches to be played in India,” the ICC said in a media release. “This decision was taken following an ICC Board meeting convened to discuss the BCB’s request to move matches to Sri Lanka. After considering all security assessments, including independent reviews, the ICC found no threat to Bangladesh players, officials, media, or fans at any of the venues in India.”
