Bangladesh’s Youth and Sports Adviser Asif Nazrul has openly questioned whether the International Cricket Council is fully grasping the gravity of the situation surrounding the national team’s participation in the 2026 T20 World Cup matches scheduled in India. Speaking to the media on Wednesday after a meeting with Bangladesh Cricket Board president Aminul Islam Bulbul and vice-president Faruque Ahmed, Asif Nazrul said the response received from the ICC failed to reflect the seriousness of the security concerns raised by Bangladesh.
The issue escalated after fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman was released by Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of the next IPL season, following advice from the BCCI. Soon after, the BCB formally asked the ICC to move Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup fixtures from India to co-host Sri Lanka. “After reading the letter we received from the ICC today, we felt that they have not fully understood the serious security situation that has developed in India for Bangladeshi cricketers,” Asif Nazrul said. “To me, it does not feel like only a security issue. It feels like an issue of national humiliation as well. Still, we are primarily treating it as a security issue.” Asif Nazrul said discussions with the BCB leadership led to a unanimous view that Bangladesh’s qualification for the World Cup came through hard work and deserved respect. “We are a cricket-crazy nation and we definitely want to play. We do not want to play the T20 World Cup at the cost of national humiliation, at the cost of the security of our cricketers, spectators and journalists, or at the cost of the country’s dignity.” Reiterating Bangladesh’s position, Asif Nazrul made it clear that the request to shift matches was non-negotiable. “When it comes to the security of our cricketers, the security of Bangladesh, and the honour and dignity of Bangladesh, there will be no compromise. We want to play the T20 World Cup and since there is another host country, Sri Lanka, we want to play there. We are firm on this position.” The adviser also pointed to the Mustafizur episode as evidence of a wider problem. “When the Indian cricket board itself is telling the Kolkata team that they cannot provide security to this player and asking them to drop him from the team, that alone shows there is no environment in India where it is safe to play.” On the possibility of the ICC rejecting the request, Asif Nazrul said the immediate focus was persuasion. “Our first stand is to convince the ICC. We have strong arguments and we will convince them with those arguments. On the question of Bangladesh’s security, honour and dignity, there will be no compromise.”
