The International Cricket Council (ICC) has reportedly conveyed to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) that a final decision on Bangladesh’s participation in the T20 World Cup 2026 is set to be taken by January 21.
According to a report by ESPNcricinfo, the ICC has given Bangladesh a deadline to decide whether they will travel to India or not for their T20 World Cup matches.
ICC officials held a discussion with BCB representatives on Saturday to discuss the issue. During the meeting, the Bangladeshi board told the ICC that it wants to participate in the T20 World Cup 2026 but reiterated that the team will not travel to India, due to security concerns.
The ICC, however, reassured the Bangladeshi board that there is no such threat to the team.
If the Bangladeshi team decides to boycott the T20 World Cup 2026, the ICC will name a replacement team, which according to the current rankings would be Scotland.
The development comes after the ICC rejected Bangladesh’s request to swap groups with Ireland.
“We’ve received definitive assurances that we won’t move from the original schedule. We’re definitely playing the Group Stage in Sri Lanka,” an official from Cricket Ireland told Cricbuzz in a statement.
Ireland, which is placed in Group C of the T20 World Cup alongside co-hosts Sri Lanka, Australia, Zimbabwe and Oman, will play all its group stage matches in Sri Lanka.
On the other hand, Bangladesh is placed in Group B alongside West Indies, England, Nepal and Italy. The team is scheduled to play its group matches in Kolkata and Mumbai.
On January 4, Bangladesh urged the ICC to move its matches from India to Sri Lanka, citing security concerns after its cricketer Mustafizur Rahman was released by his IPL franchise Kolkata Knight Riders.
The BCB said that if the BCCI could not ensure security for one cricketer, how can the entire team travel to India.
The BCCI had asked KKR to release Rahman after several right-wing groups and individuals objected to his inclusion in the IPL amid rising violence against Hindus in Bangladesh.