CRICKET’s governing body has told Bangladesh to agree to play their matches at next month’s T20 World Cup in India or risk being removed from the tournament, reports said on Monday.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has refused to play in India, citing security concerns, and has asked the International Cricket Council (ICC) to move their matches to co-host Sri Lanka.
The BCB held talks in Dhaka at the weekend with ICC officials over the issue, but no agreement was reached.
“During the discussions, the BCB reiterated its formal request to the ICC to relocate Bangladesh’s matches to Sri Lanka,” a BCB statement said.
The ICC has not officially commented, but website Cricinfo and other Indian media reported on Monday that a deadline of Wednesday had been set for Dhaka to make a decision.
ICC sources told AFP that Bangladesh could be replaced by Scotland, the highest-ranked team that did not qualify for the World Cup.
The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup begins on February 7, with Bangladesh in England’s Group C and scheduled to play all of their group matches in Kolkata and Mumbai.
One proposal was for Bangladesh to swap with Group B’s Ireland, whose matches are in Sri Lanka.
“Among other points, the possibility of moving Bangladesh to a different group as a means of facilitating the matter with minimum logistical adjustments was discussed,” the BCB said.
Pakistan will play all their matches in Colombo under an ICC agreement with India to use neutral venues in global or regional tournaments.
The issue began on January 3, when the Indian Premier League’s Kolkata Knight Riders were ordered by India’s cricket board to drop Bangladesh fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman, triggering anger in Dhaka.
Political relations between India and Bangladesh worsened after a mass uprising in Dhaka in 2024 that removed then prime minister Sheikh Hasina, an ally of New Delhi.
India’s foreign ministry last month condemned what it called “unremitting hostility against minorities” in Muslim-majority Bangladesh.
Bangladesh’s interim leader, Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus, has accused India of exaggerating the scale of the violence.
(With inputs from agencies)
