Bangladesh will not participate in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup after cricket’s global body declined Dhaka’s request to move the team’s fixtures out of India, Youth and Sports Adviser Prof. Asif Nazrul said on Thursday.
Speaking to reporters at the InterContinental Hotel following a meeting with national players, Nazrul said there is “no scope” to reverse the government’s decision not to travel to India due to security concerns. “The risk environment has not changed,” he noted, adding that the decision stemmed from “a real incident,” and alleging that “one of our best players was effectively pushed out of India after extremists were appeased”—a reference he linked to the controversy surrounding left-arm seamer Mustafizur Rahman. He did not disclose details of his discussion with the squad.
Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Aminul Islam, speaking separately, said the board would “keep trying” to find a solution that enables participation. “We are not giving up. We want to play the World Cup. We just don’t want to go to India right now—we want to play in Sri Lanka,” he said, stressing the team remains prepared.
The comments followed an ICC meeting that, according to the BCB, gave Bangladesh 24 hours to consult the government on its stance. With the venue-switch plea denied and Dhaka holding firm, Bangladesh’s withdrawal from this edition now appears definitive.