Bangladesh's T20 World Cup Fate Hangs in Balance, Final Call Jan 21

ESPNCricinfo understands that the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) were told of this deadline by the International Cricket Council (ICC) during their discussions at Dhaka on Saturday.

During Saturday's discussions, which marked the second meeting between the two parties in the same week, the BCB once again was firm in their stance of featuring in the T20 World Cup, but outside India. Ever since the release of Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman from Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) IPL 2026 squad on instructions of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) amid ongoing minority atrocities in Bangladesh, BCB has been pushing for matches to be relocated outside India, citing concerns about "safety and security" of players.

On the other hand, ICC is firm on not changing the original schedule, in which Bangladesh is in Group C with Italy, New Zealand, West Indies and Nepal. For three weeks, no final decision has come, and the opening game of Bangladesh is just three weeks away, against the West Indies at Kolkata on February 7. They will play two more group stage matches at Kolkata's iconic Eden Gardens, followed by their final group stage game in Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium.

During talks on Saturday, it was also understood that ICC did not agree to having Bangladesh and Ireland swap groups, taking Bangladesh to Group B, making them play their opening games in Sri Lanka. ICC is also understood to have assured BCB that India poses no security threats to the Bangladesh team.

The ones familiar with all discussions between both parties have indicated that the ball is in the BCB's court to take a final call. If they refuse to send their team to India, ICC is likely to name a replacement, and as per current rankings, it could be Scotland.

ICC sources had said on Monday that independent risk assessments, carried out by internationally recognised security experts, do not conclude that Bangladesh cannot play its scheduled T20 World Cup matches in India, noting that the overall security risk for the tournament in India has been assessed as low to moderate, which is consistent with the profile of many major global sporting events.

The sources said the independent risk assessments did not identify any specific or direct threat to the Bangladesh team, its officials, or the match venues in India. They said based on the professional advice received, the risk associated with Bangladesh's scheduled fixtures in Kolkata and Mumbai is assessed as low to moderate, with no indication of risks that cannot be effectively managed through established security planning and mitigation measures.

The sources said that ICC is aware of public comments made in recent days concerning the participation of Bangladesh in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026, including selective references to the ICC's security risk assessment.

- ANI