The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday confirmed that the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will proceed as scheduled with Bangladesh’s matches to be played in India.
The decision was taken following an ICC Board meeting (via videoconference) convened to discuss the way forward after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) sought its matches be moved to Sri Lanka.
The decision was taken after considering all security assessments conducted, including independent reviews, all of which indicated there was no threat to Bangladesh players, media persons, officials and fans at any of the tournament venues in India.
The ICC Board noted that it was not feasible to make changes so close to the tournament and that altering the schedule under the circumstances, in the absence of any credible security threat, could set a precedent that would jeopardise the sanctity of future ICC events and undermine its neutrality as a global governing body.
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The ICC management also engaged in a series of correspondences and meetings with the BCB in a bid to resolve the impasse, sharing detailed information on the event security plan, including layered federal and state law-enforcement support.
An ICC spokesperson said: “Over the past several weeks, the ICC has engaged with the BCB in sustained and constructive dialogue, with the clear objective of enabling Bangladesh’s participation in the tournament. During this period, the ICC has shared detailed inputs, including independent security assessments, comprehensive venue-level security plans and formal assurances from the host authorities, all of which consistently concluded that there is no credible or verifiable threat to the safety or security of the Bangladesh team in India.
“Despite these efforts, the BCB maintained its position, repeatedly linking its participation in the tournament to a single, isolated and unrelated development concerning one of its player’s involvement in a domestic league. This linkage has no bearing on the tournament’s security framework or the conditions governing participation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
‘ICC remains committed to acting in good faith’
“The ICC’s venue and scheduling decisions are guided by objective threat assessments, host guarantees, and the tournament’s agreed terms of participation, which apply uniformly to all 20 competing nations. In the absence of any independent security findings that materially compromise the safety of the Bangladesh team, the ICC is unable to relocate fixtures. Doing so would carry significant logistical and scheduling consequences for other teams and fans worldwide and would also create far-reaching precedent-related challenges that risk undermining the neutrality, fairness, and integrity of ICC governance.
“The ICC remains committed to acting in good faith, upholding consistent standards, and safeguarding the collective interests of the global game.”
Bangladesh had threatened to pull out of the tournament citing security threats to the players. This was after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had asked IPL franchise Kolkata Knights Riders to release Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman from their squad.
Even though the BCCI had never stated why it had asked Kolkata Knight Riders to release Mustafizur, it was obviously as a reaction to the political happenings in the neighbouring country and especially the persecution of minorities. A certain section, especially in West Bengal, were vocal about the sufferings of the minorities in Bangladesh.
Mustafizur was the only Bangladesh player to feature in the 2026 edition of the IPL. Therefore, the BCB and the Bangladesh government felt it an insult to the player as well as the country.
But the threat was not going to hold good as there has never been a security threat to any team or player in India. Even though Bangladesh had tried to stand its ground and also garner support from others, it was never going to work against India.
Even the Bangladesh players were disturbed about the happenings. In fact, Bangladesh captain Litton Das acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding Bangladesh’s participation in the tournament. He, however, said there was still enough time for players to prepare mentally should they take part in the tournament, which begins on February 7.
“If we had known who our group opponents were (in the World Cup) or which country we were going to, that would have helped,” Litton said following Rangpur Riders’ exit from the BPL. “You have seen that we have announced the squad, but until now, no player knows which country we are going to or whom we will play against. Like me, the whole of Bangladesh is now uncertain.”
