The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is facing a major internal crisis after Bangladesh players threatened to boycott domestic cricket over the controversial comments of board director M Nazmul Islam. Notably, the board had issued a show cause notice to Nazmul for calling former captain Tamim Iqbal an “Indian agent”.
Nazmul made the comments after Tamim asked the BCB to put cricketing priorities first before taking a final decision on Bangladesh’s participation in the T20 World Cup 2026. Following the release of Mustafizur Rahman from the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) team, the BCB decided not to travel to India citing security concerns.
Bangladesh cricketers demand Nazmul Islam’s resignation, threaten boycott
Bangladesh Cricketers’ Welfare Association president Mohammad Mithun warned that players could boycott the Bangladesh Premier League and all of cricket. The announcement came just hours after Nazmul Islam addressed the media at the BCB headquarters in Dhaka.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday evening, Mithun said that Nazmul’s comments have hurt the cricket community and are unacceptable. He demanded Nazmul’s resignation and warned that if this did not happen before the next day’s match, the players would boycott all forms of cricket.
“Comments made by BCB Director [Najmul Islam] “This has hurt the cricket world a lot and is not acceptable,” Mithun told reporters on Wednesday evening. “We demand his resignation,” he said. If he does not resign before tomorrow’s match, we will announce a boycott of all cricket starting from BPL matches tomorrow (Thursday).”
BCB issues show cause notice to Nazmul Islam
Bangladesh Cricket Board has started disciplinary action against Nazmul Islam. The board issued the show cause notice hours before the start of the Bangladesh Premier League match on Wednesday.
Notably, BCB confirmed that formal proceedings are underway, with Nazmul given 48 hours to submit a written response, after which the board will decide on its next step through the appropriate process.
“The Board has already initiated formal disciplinary proceedings against the Board member concerned,” the BCB statement said.
“A show cause letter has been issued, and the individual has been directed to submit a written response within 48 hours. The matter will be dealt with through due process and appropriate action will be taken depending on the outcome of the proceedings.”
Bangladesh cricket boycott deepens due to match not starting
According to ESPNcricinfo, the situation worsened on Thursday morning when four first-class matches in the Dhaka Cricket League did not start on time as scheduled.
Players of Chattogram Royals and Noakhali Express, who were scheduled to play in a Bangladesh Premier League match earlier in the day, continued to support the boycott and refused to take the field.
Late on Wednesday night, some BCB directors contacted Mohammad Mithun and offered to remove Nazmul Islam from the post of chairman of the finance committee. However, Mithun said that the players will continue the boycott.
The toss of the first match of BPL on Thursday was scheduled at 12:30 pm local time. After the start time of the match has passed, CWAB leaders are expected to hold a press conference to present their demands to the BCB, including Nazmul’s resignation.
Also read: Pakistan declares itself co-host of T20 World Cup 2026, takes over India’s Bangladesh matches