Former India cricketer Madan Lal believes that Pakistan is to blame for "instigating" Bangladesh to pull out from the 2026 T20 World Cup. This comes after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) pulled out from the tournament following the International Cricket Council's (ICC) decision to not change their venues. The BCB remained adamant on their stance to decided against travelling India for the competition, resulting in their ouster.
Amid the ongoing standoff between BCB and ICC, Madan came up with an explosive claim. He accused Pakistan of influencing Bangladesh to not play the T20 World Cup in order to bring India down. He also said that Bangladesh will be affected a lot by pulling out of the tournament while India will mostly remain unfazed.
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“I think it's foolish, I can say that because India is not going to lose anything. Bangladesh is going to lose everything because not participating in such a big tournament from the commercial point of view, Bangladesh is going to be quite a loss. I think it's Pakistan instigating them not to participate in this tournament. They just want to bring India down," Madan told India Today.
Madan lambasts BCB for claims of 'security concerns' in India
Madan also shared his take on BCB's claims of there being 'security concerns' in India. He pointed out how Bangladesh were scheduled to play one of their group stage games in Mumbai, which is one of the safest places in the country. He added that there is no merit to BCB's outrageous claims.
"They are playing in Mumbai, and it is one of the safest places in India. It doesn't make any difference to the Indian board or anything, but I think it's all politics, Pakistan and Bangladesh playing their part very strongly because they want to let India down, and that's the thing," Madan stated.
Scotland to replace Bangladesh?
Meanwhile, with Bangladesh being out of the tournament, Scotland are the frontrunners to replace them. Though they had failed to qualify through the European regional qualifiers, they are currently the highest-ranked team that is not a part of the tournament. The ICC is yet to give an official statement on the whole issue.