ICC signals replacement if Bangladesh skip T20 WC in India

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday rejected the request from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to shift its team's T20 World Cup fixtures to Sri Lanka, saying the matches will proceed as scheduled since there was no credible threat to the safety of Bangladesh players, officials or fans at any of the tournament venues in India.

The decision was taken at an ICC Board meeting held via video conference, which was convened to discuss the situation after the BCB raised concerns and sought a change in venues.

"The ICC Board noted that relocating matches under the present circumstances could jeopardise the sanctity of ICC events and undermine the organisation's neutrality as a global governing body," the ICC said in a statement.

According to the ICC, the Board reviewed multiple security assessments, including independent evaluations, all of which concluded that there was no credible threat to Bangladesh players.

Only Pakistan supported BCB's stand

ICC sources said that out of 16 members, 14 voted against BCB's relocation request. The ICC has given BCB one more day to reflect and take a final position.

"Of all the members, only BCB and Pakistan voted in favour of the relocation request while all other voted against it. Bangladesh was given time till January 21 to confirm its participation but they have been given one more day by the ICC Board to state their position," said the ICC source.

The ICC also said that making changes to the schedule at such a late stage was not feasible and that altering fixtures in the absence of a verified security risk could set an "undesirable precedent" for future global events.

The world governing body said its management had held a series of meetings and correspondences with the BCB in recent weeks, sharing detailed information on the tournament's security arrangements.

These included venue-specific plans and assurances of layered protection involving federal and state law enforcement agencies.

An ICC spokesperson said the organisation had engaged in “sustained and constructive dialogue” with the BCB with the objective of ensuring Bangladesh's participation in the tournament.

"Independent security assessments, comprehensive venue-level security plans and formal assurances from host authorities consistently concluded that there is no credible or verifiable threat to the safety or security of the Bangladesh team in India," the spokesperson said.

'A single, isolated and unrelated development'

The ICC, however, expressed concern that the BCB continued to link its participation to what it described as a "single, isolated and unrelated development” involving one of its players' participation in a domestic league, a matter the ICC said had no bearing on the tournament's security framework.

The Board reiterated that venue and scheduling decisions are guided by objective threat assessments, host guarantees and agreed participation terms, which apply uniformly to all 20 teams in the competition.

"In the absence of any independent security findings that materially compromise safety, the ICC is unable to relocate fixtures. Doing so would carry significant logistical and scheduling consequences for other teams and fans worldwide, and would also create far-reaching precedent-related challenges that risk undermining the neutrality, fairness, and integrity of ICC governance," the spokesperson said.

Bangladesh government's sports advisor Asif Nazrul on Tuesday had reiterated that under no condition would the national team travel to India.

The crisis was triggered by the removal of Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman from Kolkata Knight Riders' roster for this year's Indian Premier League on BCCI's instructions for unspecified "developments all around".

Citing security concerns and national pride, the BCB responded by announcing its national team won't travel to India for its T20 World Cup group stage games in Kolkata and Mumbai.

BCB wants to play each of the four group stage matches in Sri Lanka, where the marquee India-Pakistan clash will also be held as per the mutually agreed arrangement for ICC events until 2027.

Bangladesh are currently placed in Group C along with the West Indies, Italy, England and Nepal.

In their last meeting with ICC officials in Dhaka, the BCB had proposed swapping positions with Ireland in Group B, which features tournament co-hosts Sri Lanka, Australia, Oman and Zimbabwe.

Such a move would allow Bangladesh to remain in Sri Lanka for the entirety of its group stage engagements.

The bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh have deteriorated in recent months, exacerbated by the killings of Hindus in Bangladesh.

Former Bangladesh captain Tamim Iqbal and current Test skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto have cautioned against a very hard-line approach on the controversial subject, with the former saying that decisions taken today would have repercussions 10 years down the line.

ICC sets 24-hour deadline

The BCB has been given a final 24-hour window to communicate its position to the ICC and clarify whether it has government clearance to tour India for the tournament.

Should Bangladesh pull out, Scotland are expected to step in as their replacement in Group C as per current rankings. Scotland had narrowly missed qualification for the 2026 T20 World Cup, finishing behind the Netherlands, Italy and Jersey at the European qualifiers.

ICC chairman Jay Shah attended the meeting, which also included representatives from several member boards.

Among those present were BCB president Aminul Islam, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia, SLC president Shammi Silva, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi, Cricket Australia chairman Mike Baird, Zimbabwe Cricket president Tavenga Mukuhlani, CWI president Kishore Shallow, Cricket Ireland chair Brian MacNeice, New Zealand Cricket representative Roger Twose, ECB chair Richard Thompson, Cricket South Africa representative Mohammed Moosajee and Afghanistan Cricket Board chairman Mirwais Ashraf.