Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Jan 13: Even as the International Cricket Council (ICC) has shown reluctance to concede Bangladesh Cricket Board’s request to shift its matches in the coming T20 World Cup from India, the BCB on Tuesday reiterated its decision not to travel to India citing security concerns during a video conference.
The BCB and the ICC held discussions regarding the T20 World Cup 2026 on a video conference call on Tuesday. With less than a month to go for the competition, questions remain over Bangladesh’s participation as the BCB requested the ICC to shift their group stage matches from India to Sri Lanka. Representing the BCB, President Md Aminul Islam, Vice Presidents Md Shakawath Hossain and Faruque Ahmed, Director and Chairman of the Cricket Operations Committee Nazmul Abedeen and Chief Executive Officer Nizam Uddin Chowdhury reaffirmed their stance. The BCB once again cited ‘security concerns’ as the reason behind their request.
In response, the ICC said the tournament itinerary has already been announced and requested the BCB to reconsider their position. However, according to the BCB official press release, Bangladesh have not made any changes to their stance and are still in conversation with ICC regarding their request.
In a statement, the BCB said the board’s position remains unchanged despite the ICC’s reluctance to entertain its request and both parties will continue to “explore possible solutions.” “While the ICC highlighted that the tournament itinerary has already been announced and requested the BCB to reconsider its stance, the Board’s position remains unchanged. Both parties agreed that discussions will continue to explore possible solutions,” the BCB said.
“The BCB remains committed to safeguarding the well-being of its players, officials and staff while engaging constructively with the ICC to address the matter,” said the BCB after its officials attended the video conference with ICC,” it added. Both the BCB and the ICC agreed to continue discussions in an effort to find a mutually acceptable solution to the issue. ICC is now expected to hold more meetings to resolve the problem soon as the T20 World Cup starts in less than 20 days.
Bangladesh are scheduled to play three games in Kolkata and one in Mumbai during the league stage. BCB asked for a relocation after the BCCI instructed Kolkata Knight Riders to release pacer Mustafizur Rahman from its IPL 2026 roster amid violence against Hindus. Following Mustafizur’s removal, an irate Bangladesh government banned IPL’s broadcast in the country.
The conflict with India continues to yield troublesome situations for Bangladesh, with the nation set to incur another huge financial blow, a report has claimed. A few days ago, it was reported that some of Bangladesh’s top players are set to lose their sponsorship contracts amid the current political tension with India. After cricketing equipment manufacturer SG put sponsorship renewals with top Bangladesh players on hold, another Indian sporting apparel brand, Sareen Sports, has reportedly decided against getting its products made in Bangladesh.
SG sponsors some of the top Bangladesh batters, including current skipper Litton Das. As the political relationship between India and Bangladesh worsened, SG is said to have put contract renewals on hold. SS, an Indian company that gets its goods manufactured in Bangladesh, is no longer sourcing services from the country.
“Their sponsorship contracts were coming up for renewal. That process has been slowed down amidst the current heightened political and cricketing tensions between India and Bangladesh,” sources said. “In fact, another leading Indian sports equipment manufacturing company, Sareen Sports Industries (SS) had cancelled the sponsorship contracts of four-five top Bangladesh cricketers last year, when trouble began in Bangladesh. However, things may change if the relations improve between the two countries,” informed another source.
In the meantime, BCB Vice President Faruque Ahmed cited Pakistan as an example to support Bangladesh’s argument, highlighting that India and Pakistan already compete under a hybrid hosting model in international tournaments. He suggested a similar arrangement could be considered for Bangladesh.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan-born USA fast bowler Ali Khan has claimed his Indian visa application has been denied less than a month before the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup begins, throwing a fresh layer of uncertainty over the Americans’ tournament build-up.
Ali Khan posted an Instagram story on Monday that read, ‘India visa denied but KFC for the win,” effectively confirming he does not currently have clearance to enter the country for the India leg of the competition. The timing is awkward for the USA because their Group A itinerary is heavily India-based.
USA are scheduled to face hosts India at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on February 7, followed by fixtures in Chennai against the Netherlands, Namibia. If the visa issue is not resolved quickly, USA could be forced into last-minute squad reshuffles at the point teams typically settle on combinations, workloads and roles.
While Khan’s story is the only direct, first-hand confirmation at this stage, multiple reports and social media chatter have suggested other USA cricketers – including wicketkeeper-batter Shayan Jahangir and bowlers Ehsan Adil and Mohammad Mohsin – may be facing similar hurdles. USA Cricket and the ICC have not issued a public statement yet, and the exact nature of the cases remains unclear.
Visa complications have been a background concern for several associate teams in the build-up to the India-hosted matches, particularly involving players of Pakistani origin or with Pakistani documentation links, given the additional checks and processes each application can attract. In recent days, there has also been broader noise around travel and participation-related logistics for visiting teams, adding to the sense that off-field paperwork could become an unwanted subplot of the tournament.
