After pacer Mustafizur Rahman was released from the Kolkata Knight Riders, the Bangladesh Cricket Board decided not to send their team to India for the T20 World Cup beginning next month. Former India batsman Aakash Chopra said that it will be very difficult to move matches to different locations with only one month left before the tournament begins.
Citing the players’ “safety and security” concerns, the BCB has formally asked the International Cricket Council to move Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup matches to locations outside of India, according to a media statement.
“An emergency meeting of the Board of Directors of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) was held this afternoon to discuss recent developments related to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, scheduled to be hosted by India and Sri Lanka,” the BCB said in a media release.
“The Board reviewed the situation in detail, taking into account developments over the last 24 hours, and expressed deep concern over the overall circumstances surrounding the participation of the Bangladesh National Team in matches scheduled to be played in India. Following a thorough assessment of the prevailing situation and the growing concerns regarding the safety and security of the Bangladesh contingent in India and considering the advice from the Bangladesh Government, the Board of Directors resolved that the Bangladesh National Team will not travel to India for the tournament under the current conditions.”
In response to a decision from the Board of Control for Cricket in India regarding atrocities done against minorities in Bangladesh, KKR announced that they had removed Bangladeshi bowler Rahman from their IPL 2026 squad.
“Now, there is only one month left (for start of T20 World Cup on February 7). The ball is in ICC’s court. They will figure out what to do. Logistically, it is going to be a little difficult because it is not easy to reshuffle a lot of matches at such short notice,” said Chopra in a video posted on Instagram.
Additionally, Chopra emphasized how this circumstance is very different from India’s decision to not travel to Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy last year.
“If you are thinking about the Champions Trophy, India had said six months ago that if we want to play, we can’t go to Pakistan. If you want to hold the tournament without us, you can. So, that was India’s stance at that point in time. And the ICC had a lot of time to manage this. There is not much time left to overcome the logistical challenge. Here, there is not much time, it is an interesting situation,” he added.
