‘Won’t Bow Down To Pressure From ICC’: Bangladesh Sports Advisor Reiterates With BCB Stance

Hyderabad: Bangladesh sports advisor Asif Nazrul has issued a strong warning to the International Cricket Council (ICC), saying they will not accept any pressure from the sport’s governing body over the topic of playing the T20 World Cup matches in India.

The marquee tournament is set to be played from February 7 to March 8, 2026. Bangladesh have refused to play their World Cup matches in India, citing security concerns. In the tournament schedule released by the ICC, Bangladesh will play their fixtures in Kolkata and Mumbai.

Nazrul said in a press conference that the country will not bow down if any pressure is exerted by the ICC.

We have not heard anything about Scotland being included instead of us. If the ICC exerts pressure or bows down to the Indian cricket board (BCCI) and imposes any unreasonable conditions, or puts pressure on us, we will not accept those conditions,” he commented.

BCB have continued their stance of not playing in India. They had formally sought either a change of venues to Sri Lanka or a reshuffling of groups. However, ICC is reportedly reluctant to accept any of the requests made by the BCB. The deadlock between the two parties has resulted in them attempting to find a solution so that the crisis doesn’t disrupt the event.

Bangladesh are grouped together with England, West Indies, Italy and Nepal in Group C. Earlier, there were reports that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had also said that they would withdraw from the tournament if Bangladesh pulled out of the marquee event.

The whole issue around Bangladesh’s participation in India stemmed from Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman’s release by the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). They released the pacer on the directive of the BCCI, and Bangladesh took a stance in retaliation that they would not play in India.