T20 World Cup controversy: 'Playing in India not safe' - Bangladesh's blunt warning as ICC refuses venue shift

NEW DELHI: Even as the International Cricket Council (ICC) confirmed that the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will go ahead as scheduled, with Bangladesh’s matches to be played in India, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Aminul Islam Bulbul urged that the games be shifted to Sri Lanka, stating that it is not safe for them to play in India at the moment.


The decision was taken following an ICC Board meeting, held via video conference on Wednesday, to discuss the way forward after the BCB requested that its matches be moved to Sri Lanka.



"Playing in India right now is not safe for us; we want to play in Sri Lanka", Aminul Islam Bulbul told reporters on Wednesday night.

The ICC said the decision came after considering all security assessments, including independent reviews, which indicated that there was no threat to Bangladesh players, media personnel, officials, or fans at any of the tournament venues in India.

The ICC Board noted that it was not feasible to make changes so close to the tournament and that altering the schedule under the circumstances, in the absence of any credible security threat, could set a precedent that would jeopardise the sanctity of future ICC events and undermine its neutrality as a global governing body.

The ICC management also engaged in a series of correspondences and meetings with the BCB in an effort to resolve the impasse, sharing detailed information on the event’s security plan, including layered federal and state law-enforcement support.

An ICC spokesperson said, "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. During this period, the ICC has 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 in the tournament to a single, isolated and unrelated development concerning one of its players' involvement in a domestic league. This linkage has no bearing on the tournament's security framework or the conditions governing participation in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup."

"The ICC's venue and scheduling decisions are guided by objective threat assessments, host guarantees, and the tournament's agreed terms of participation, which apply uniformly to all 20 competing nations. In the absence of any independent security findings that materially compromise the safety of the Bangladesh team, 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 ICC remains committed to acting in good faith, upholding consistent standards, and safeguarding the collective interests of the global game," the statement added.

The T20 World Cup will begin on February 7. Bangladesh are scheduled to start their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign on February 7 against two-time champions West Indies at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The Litton Das-led side will then face Italy on February 9 at the same venue before taking on England in Kolkata once again. After the England match, Bangladesh are set to travel to Mumbai to play Nepal at the Wankhede Stadium.

However, BCB officials said the board will inform the ICC of Bangladesh’s final decision after consultations with the government on Thursday.




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