The India Cricket Council (ICC) has handed the Bangladesh Cricket Council (BCB) a 1-day ultimatum to reconsider their relocation demand.
Amid rising geopolitical tensions between India and Bangladesh, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had cancelled Mustafizur Rahman’s contract with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). The BCB retaliated. Citing security concerns, the BCB refused to send the Bangladesh cricket team to India for the T20 World Cup 2026.
ICC’s ultimatum to Bangladesh
For the last two weeks, there has been back and forth between the ICC and BCB. The ICC even sent officials to Dhaka to discuss the matter, as the BCB is demanding that their matches be out of India, or they will withdraw from the tournament.
Despite talks, no definitive conclusion was reached. BCB had suggested that the ICC swap groups with Ireland and send them over to Group B. But the ICC didn’t agree. The stalemate continued. That is, until now.
According to ESPNcricinfo, the ICC has laid down the law and told the BCB to deliberate with the Bangladesh government about their refusal to travel to India. If they don’t change their stance, Scotland will replace them in Group C. The ICC took the decision after voting on the matter, with a majority of the members against complying with BCB’s demand for relocation.
“Despite these efforts, the BCB maintained its position, repeatedly linking its participation in the tournament to a single, isolated and unrelated development concerning one of its player’s involvement in a domestic league. This linkage has no bearing on the tournament’s security framework or the conditions governing participation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
The ICC’s venue and scheduling decisions are guided by objective threat assessments, host guarantees, and the tournament’s agreed terms of participation, which apply uniformly to all 20 competing nations. In the absence of any independent security findings that materially compromise the safety of the Bangladesh team, the ICC is unable to relocate fixtures. Doing so would carry significant logistical and scheduling consequences for other teams and fans worldwide, and would also create far-reaching precedent-related challenges that risk undermining the neutrality, fairness, and integrity of ICC governance.
The ICC remains committed to acting in good faith, upholding consistent standards, and safeguarding the collective interests of the global game,” the ICC said in a statement.
Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup 2026 schedule
| Date | Teams | Venue | Time (IST) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat, Feb 7, 2026 | West Indies vs Bangladesh | Eden Gardens, Kolkata | 3:00 PM |
| Mon, Feb 9, 2026 | Bangladesh vs Italy | Eden Gardens, Kolkata | 11:00 AM |
| Sat, Feb 14, 2026 | England vs Bangladesh | Eden Gardens, Kolkata | 3:00 PM |
| Tue, Feb 17, 2026 | Bangladesh vs Nepal | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 7:00 PM |
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