The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has issued a clarification following recent public comments about the national team’s participation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 in India. This comes after the International Cricket Council (ICC) refuted earlier claims of security risks raised by Bangladesh’s Sports Adviser, Asif Nazrul.
Bangladesh's old claims of security risk
Earlier, Asif Nazrul had told reporters that "it was impossible for the Bangladesh team to visit India" for the marquee event. He said the ICC’s security team had sent a letter warning that including Mustafizur Rahman in the squad, having fans wear the national jersey in India, or the timing of elections in Bangladesh could increase security risks for the team. Nazrul described these as serious threats and suggested that the team could not play in India under these circumstances.
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ICC on Bangladesh's claims
In response, the ICC clearly rejected these claims, stating that the Bangladesh team faces no specific threat and that such reports were a misrepresentation of routine contingency planning. The ICC emphasised that it never suggested excluding players, restricting fans from wearing national colours, or altering domestic processes for the tournament.
BCB's U-turn after ICC's clarification
Following the ICC’s clarification, the BCB released a statement to address the confusion. The board said that the correspondence cited by Asif Nazrul was an internal communication between the BCB and the ICC Security Department, related only to routine threat assessments for the team. The BCB made it clear that this does not constitute an official response from the ICC to their request for relocating Bangladesh’s matches outside India.
BCB's clarification
The BCB reiterated that it has formally raised concerns regarding venue arrangements and has requested the relocation of Bangladesh’s matches in the interest of the team’s security. The board also confirmed that it is still awaiting an official response from the ICC on this matter.
This statement marks a clear change in tone from the earlier public comments by the Sports Adviser. It clarifies that the ICC has not issued any warnings against the Bangladesh team’s participation and reinforces that all previous claims of security threats in India were incorrect.
The BCB continues to engage with the ICC while waiting for a formal reply regarding the relocation of Bangladesh’s matches for the 2026 T20 World Cup.