Bangladesh have reiterated their stance on not travelling to India for the T20 World Cup and can, as soon as once more, request the Worldwide Cricket Council (ICC) to relocate their video games to Sri Lanka regardless of the worldwide cricket physique’s refusal to vary the match’s schedule.
“We are going to return to the ICC with our plan to play in Sri Lanka,” BCB President Aminul Islam stated after a gathering between BCB officers, Bangladeshi cricketers and representatives of the federal government in Dhaka on Thursday.
Advisable Tales
listing of three gadgetsfinish of listing
The announcement got here a day after the worldwide cricket physique warned the BCB that expulsion from the Males’s T20 World Cup 2026 may happen ought to it not conform to play its matches in India, with Scotland changing it in Group C.
The ICC requested the BCB to evaluate its determination with the Bangladeshi authorities and provides a response inside a day, following which a ultimate determination could be made.
“They did give us a 24-hour ultimatum, however a worldwide physique can’t actually try this,” Islam advised reporters.
“We need to play the World Cup, however we received’t play in India. We are going to hold preventing,” he added.
The BCB chief stated the ICC would stand to lose if Bangladesh had been expelled from the match.
“The ICC will miss out on 200 million individuals watching the World Cup,” he stated.
Bangladesh are scheduled to play on the opening day of the match, on February 7, after they face the West Indies at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. They’re set to play two different group-stage video games on the identical venue earlier than their ultimate Group C fixture towards Nepal on the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Nonetheless, the BCB has refused to ship its staff to India, citing issues over gamers’ security and safety.
The transfer adopted the abrupt elimination of star quick bowler Mustafizur Rahman from the Indian Premier League (IPL) upon directions from the Board of Management for Cricket in India (BCCI), as a result of ongoing political tensions between the 2 nations.
The ICC stated, on Wednesday, that it had shared detailed unbiased safety assessments, complete venue-level safety plans and formal assurances from the host authorities with the BCB and that each one stories concluded “there is no such thing as a credible or verifiable risk to the security or safety of the Bangladesh staff in India.
“Regardless of these efforts, the BCB maintained its place, repeatedly linking its participation within the match to a single, remoted and unrelated improvement regarding one in every of its gamers’ involvement in a home league,” an ICC spokesperson stated after the worldwide physique’s board met through video convention to debate the difficulty.
“This linkage has no bearing on the match’s safety framework or the situations governing participation within the ICC Males’s T20 World Cup,” the ICC spokesperson added.
Asif Nazrul, a youth and sports activities adviser within the interim Bangladeshi authorities, dismissed the ICC’s claims, saying it had did not quash Bangladesh’s issues.
“The ICC has did not persuade us on the safety query and has taken no stand on our grievances,” he stated.
“Even the Indian authorities didn’t talk with us or attempt to assuage our fears.
“We’re hopeful that ICC will give us the chance to play in Sri Lanka. It’s our authorities who has determined to not go to India.”
Earlier than the most recent spherical of talks, Bangladesh captain Litton Das had expressed issues over the uncertainty surrounding his staff’s participation.
“From the place I stand, I’m unsure; everyone seems to be unsure,” Das advised reporters after a home cricket match on Tuesday.
Diplomatic relations between the once-close allies have been sharply examined since August final yr, when former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to New Delhi from Dhaka after an rebellion towards her rule.
Bangladesh blames India for quite a few its troubles, together with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s help for Hasina when she was in energy.
In the course of the World Cup, Bangladesh will maintain its first elections since Hasina’s ousting.
