ICC rejects Bangladesh’s request to relocate T20 World Cup matches

Dubai: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has rejected Bangladesh’s request to relocate their matches in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup away from India.

The decision was taken at an emergency ICC board meeting attended by all member nations, where it was unanimously agreed that Bangladesh’s request could not be accommodated.

According to Indian media reports, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has been given 24 hours to confirm whether it will participate in the tournament.

The matter was put to a vote among the 16-member ICC board, with all but two members opposing any changes to the existing schedule. As a result, the tournament — scheduled to run from February 7 to March 8 — will proceed as planned.

If the BCB chooses not to travel to India, Bangladesh will be replaced by another team, most likely Scotland, based on ICC rankings.

Scotland as replacement

Scotland, currently ranked 14th in T20Is, are the highest-ranked side that failed to qualify for the tournament.

Bangladesh are drawn in Group C alongside West Indies, England, Nepal and Italy. They are scheduled to play three group matches in Kolkata before travelling to Mumbai for their final group fixture.

Following the meeting, the ICC issued a statement reaffirming its position. “The decision was taken after considering all security assessments conducted, including independent reviews, all of which indicated there was no threat to Bangladesh players, media personnel, officials or fans at any of the tournament venues in India,” the ICC said.

An ICC spokesperson also dismissed the BCB’s attempts to link Mustafizur Rahman’s exclusion from the Indian Premier League to concerns over player safety. “Over the past several weeks, the ICC has engaged with the BCB in sustained and constructive dialogue with the clear objective of enabling Bangladesh’s participation in the tournament,” the spokesperson said.

“During this period, the ICC shared detailed inputs, including independent security assessments, comprehensive venue-level security plans and formal assurances from the host authorities, all of which consistently concluded that there is no credible or verifiable threat to the safety or security of the Bangladesh team in India.

“Despite these efforts, the BCB maintained its position, repeatedly linking its participation to a single, isolated and unrelated issue involving a player’s participation in a domestic league. This has no relevance to the tournament’s security framework or participation conditions.”

Earlier, the BCB had formally requested the ICC to relocate Bangladesh's matchesoutside India, citing "safety and security" concerns for Bangladeshi players, according to a BCB press release.

The developments followed the announcement by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) that they had removed Bangladeshi player Muztafizur Rahman from their IPL 2026 roster in response to a directive from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) regarding atrocities committed against minorities in Bangladesh.