The Bangladesh-ICC controversy ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026 is not over yet, as some new claims have recently surfaced on media platforms. Bangladeshi media have reported that the International Cricket Council has denied Bangladeshi journalists entry to the tournament.
To cover the T20 World Cup 2026 live from the field, journalists from across the world will have to obtain permission from the council, which is an accreditation card. But according to Bangladeshi media, the ICC has now decided to reject the accreditation applications of their journalists.
These claims have been made just after the Bangladesh cricket team was out of the tournament. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the Bangladesh government went directly against the ICC with their decision not to travel to India to play major tournaments. The BCB requested the council to shift its matches from India to Sri Lanka, citing ‘safety and security concerns’.
Originally, Bangladesh were to play their group matches at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. But Bangladesh did not want to play any game there and despite receiving the ultimatum from ICC, they remained firm on their decision.
Bangladesh is currently not in T20 World Cup 2026
The ICC finally named Scotland as the replacement for the Bangladesh cricket team. Following the entry of the Scotland cricket team, Bangladesh is officially out of the T20 World Cup 2026. Following this incident, Bangladeshi media have claimed that their journalists are now facing problems regarding the accusation process.
Confirming the development, BCB media committee chairman Amjad Hossain said that 130 to 150 journalists from Bangladesh had applied for accreditation for the T20 World Cup 2026, but none of them got the required approval from the council.
Amjad said, “As far as I know, all Bangladeshi journalists were rejected. This year around 130 to 150 journalists applied, but no one got accredited.”
What will Bangladesh do now?
Journalists from Bangladesh have raised further questions: even if no team is playing, journalists from an ICC Associate Member country can still receive accreditation. Then why the rejection? It is also being said that Bangladesh Sports Journalists Association (BSJA) may hold talks with Bangladesh Sports Press Association (BSPA) and Bangladesh Sports Journalists Community (BSJC) to resolve the matter.
However, the International Cricket Council has not made any mention regarding this matter. A media report quoted a Bangladeshi journalist as saying, “I received an approval email from the ICC media department on January 20, which also included a visa support letter. But today I received another email saying that my application has been rejected.”
According to claims, some photojournalists, who were given the green signal in the initial phase, have now received denials from the ICC.
read more: BCCI vice president shames Mohsin Naqvi, drags Pakistan’s 1971 genocide and gang rape into T20 World Cup controversy
