‘Bangladesh Will Not Play in India’: BCB Sends Formal Letter to ICC

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has formally informed the International Cricket Council (ICC) that Bangladesh will not participate in any matches of the upcoming T20 World Cup scheduled to be held on Indian soil.

The decision comes amid growing distance in cricketing relations between Bangladesh and India, which began after 5 August 2024 and has widened over time due to various issues. The recent exclusion of Mustafizur Rahman from the IPL has further intensified the gap.

In this context, strong discussions have been ongoing regarding the league stage of the forthcoming T20 World Cup. According to the schedule, all four group-stage matches of Bangladesh are supposed to be played in India. However, in the current situation, the BCB has expressed reluctance to play there.

The BCB has now officially sent a letter to the ICC stating that Bangladesh will not play any league-stage matches in India.

Initially, the board considered raising multiple issues with the ICC, but ultimately decided to formally communicate only this one demand. On Saturday (4 January) afternoon, the BCB’s 17 directors held a meeting and took the new decision regarding the T20 World Cup. As per the decision, Bangladesh will not participate in any match of the World Cup held on Indian soil.

A top-level BCB director has confirmed the matter.

The upcoming T20 World Cup is scheduled to be held from 7 February to 8 March. Bangladesh has been placed in Group C, where their opponents are former world champions England and West Indies, along with Nepal and Italy.

According to the previously announced schedule, Bangladesh was set to begin its World Cup campaign on 7 February against West Indies at the historic Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The Tigers were scheduled to face England and Italy at the same venue in the next two matches. The final group-stage match was set to be against Nepal in Mumbai.