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BCB breaks silence on ICC’s T20 World Cup decision: ‘We knew the council did not want to meet Bangladesh’s request’
Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) broke its silence, saying it had accepted the ICC’s decision as there was nothing more it could do.
Hours after the International Cricket Council (ICC) ejected Bangladesh from the 2026 T20 World Cup and formally announced Scotland as the replacement team for the tournament, which is slated to begin in a fortnight in India, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) broke its silence, saying it had accepted the ICC’s decision as there was nothing more it could do.
The ICC was forced to make the late change on Saturday after Bangladesh remained firm in its stance of not sending its squad to India, citing security concerns despite an independent security assessment ruling out any specific threat. Scotland will replace Bangladesh in Group B of the T20 World Cup 2026.
Speaking to the press, BCB media committee chairman Amjad Hossain said the board tried its best but knew the ICC “will not do it” or “do not want to” meet Bangladesh’s request, leaving them with no further options.
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“We have tried our best. We fully respect the ICC Board, and the Board’s majority decision was that the match cannot be relocated,” he said.
“Even after that, we tried in our own way and made requests. Since they will not do it or do not want to, there is nothing more we can do,” Hossain added. “We have accepted the ICC Board’s decision, as the ICC has said that we will not be able to go and play, nor can our match be shifted to Sri Lanka.”
While the BCB made a last-ditch attempt to overturn the decision by approaching the ICC’s Dispute Resolution Committee (DRC), the effort proved futile. Hossain confirmed that the board would not pursue “any separate arbitration or any other process”.
“In this case, we cannot go to India to play, and our stance remains the same. We are not going into any separate arbitration or any other process,” he said.
“We have spoken with the government, which has said that going to India to play in the World Cup would not be safe for our players, journalists, or anyone accompanying the team.”
“In that case, we requested that our match be shifted to Sri Lanka. However, the ICC did not agree, even after several rounds of meetings. Since the ICC did not respond, there is not much we can do because this is the government’s decision.”
The T20 World Cup 2026 will begin on February 7.
