T20 World Cup: Bangladesh seek ‘affable and practical’ solution with ICC

The impasse over Bangladesh’s participation in the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka may see a thaw, with the cricket board now pledging to arrive at an ‘’affable and practical solution’’ with the ICC to ensure a ‘’smooth and successful participation’’ of the national team in the marquee event.

A press release issued by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Wednesday afternoon, however, denies receiving any ICC ultimatum of having to drop points in case the Tigers stick to their stance of not travelling to India over a threat perception to their team.

‘’The BCB has taken note of certain reports published in a section of the media suggesting that the board has received an ultimatum in this regard. The BCB categorically states that such claims are completely false, unfounded and do not reflect the nature or content of the communication received from the ICC,’’ the statement said.

This is in reference to a report in a leading cricket website which said ICC had rejected the plea to shift Bangladesh’s matches out of India, and the matches will be treated as a ‘walkover’ in case of a no-show.

The BCB response marks the latest development in the wake of the Mustafizur Rehman row which erupted on 3 January, when the Indian cricket board abruptly issued a diktat to its IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders to drop the left-arm pacer from the team.

The BCCI’s somewhat opaque explanation referred to ‘recent developments’ and ‘administrative considerations’ as the reason behind such a call, which resulted in the BCB refusing to tour India for the T20 World Cup owing to safety considerations.

This was followed on Tuesday by the Bangladesh government’s hard line of banning IPL telecast in the country, while Mustafizur has now made himself available to the Pakistan Super League (PSL). However, the tenor of the latest BCB statement, which follows a virtual meeting on 6 January between ICC top brass and board officials, is more conciliatory — emphasising safety concerns and steering away from the tit-for-tat stand on the Mustafizur issue.

“The Bangladesh Cricket Board remains firmly committed to placing the highest priority on the safety, security and well-being of the Bangladesh national cricket team. The Board will continue constructive engagement with the ICC and relevant event authorities in a cooperative and professional manner to arrive at an affable and practical solution that ensures the smooth and successful participation of the team in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026,” the statement concluded.

The recent crisis, incidentally, puts to test the diplomatic skills of the Jay Shah-led ICC dispensation, which has to put up a neutral front in case of any stand-off between the Indian board and any other board members.

Well-placed sources in Bangladesh cricket circles feel the BCB is now trying to find an honourable exit from its earlier stance of moving matches from India as the ICC actually conveyed to it that the ICC's own security assessments do not flag any specific or credible risks to Bangladeshi players. The governing body hence said there was no justification for altering the tournament’s venues or schedule for now.

‘’Even the BCB knows well that with the departure of the national team to India on 26 January, it’s not really tenable to alter the venues to Sri Lanka given the watertight fixtures of the tournament. A large continent of Bangladesh media, meanwhile, has already begun making travel arrangements and have asked the ICC to issue letters for visas to India,’’ sources said.

The onus will, hence, be on the BCB and ICC to find an honourable exit from the current tangle with the BCCI playing a key role. The assurance of a heightened security ring — reportedly on offer for Liton Das & Co when they set foot in India — could be a step in that direction as an official ICC response is awaited by 10 January.