ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has rejected Bangladesh's request to change the venue for the T20 World Cup. Following a meeting on Wednesday, the sport's governing body clarified that there would be no changes to the T20 World Cup schedule. The meeting was held via video conference. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) had requested the ICC to move their World Cup matches outside of India, citing player safety concerns after Mustafizur Rahman was released by the Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of the IPL.
The ICC issued a statement after the meeting, saying that the decision was made after considering all security assessments. Independent reviews confirmed that there is no threat to Bangladeshi players, media personnel, officials, or fans at any tournament venue in India.
The ICC stated that since there is no credible security threat to Bangladesh, making changes so close to the start of the tournament is not feasible. The ICC added that altering the schedule under the current circumstances would set a precedent that could jeopardize the integrity of future ICC events and undermine its impartiality as a global governing body.
Reason behind Bangladesh's Appeal
Bangladesh is scheduled to play matches against West Indies on February 7, Italy on February 9, and England on February 14 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. This will be followed by a match against Nepal at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on February 17. Amidst rising violence against Hindus in Bangladesh, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had instructed the Kolkata Knight Riders to remove Mustafizur Rahman from their IPL 2026 team. Following this, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) requested the ICC to shift its matches from India to Sri Lanka.
ICC's Response
The ICC stated that its decision was based on a security assessment, which included independent reviews. This assessment found no threat to Bangladeshi players, officials, media, or fans at any of the tournament venues in India. The ICC clarified that changes were not feasible so close to the start of the tournament. According to the ICC, altering the schedule without a credible security risk could set a precedent that would undermine the integrity of future ICC events.
According to ICC sources, 14 out of 16 members voted against BCB’s request to relocate. The ICC has granted BCB an additional day to reconsider and make a final decision.
“Of all the members, only BCB and Pakistan voted in favour of the relocation request while all other voted against it. Bangladesh was given time till January 21 to confirm its participation but they have been given one more day by the ICC Board to state their position,” the ICC source was quoted as saying to PTI.
BCB President reacts to the statement issued by the ICC, saying he is still hopeful of the apex body doing a turnaround and shifting its matches to Sri Lanka.
"I am hoping for a miracle from the ICC. Who doesn't want to play the World Cup? We can't really comment after the ICC's press release. The meeting went on for an hour and a half. We explained to the ICC board the reasons for our decision before the voting began. We didn't want to go into voting. We stepped back," Aminul told Cricbuzz.
Scotland Will Replace Bangladesh
If Bangladesh withdraws from this major event, it is expected that Scotland will take their place. This team is currently ranked 14th and is the highest-ranked team that did not qualify for the T20 World Cup 2026. Therefore, they would be the logical replacement. Scotland previously replaced Zimbabwe after their withdrawal in 2009.
