The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has now reached an impasse, and the situation over the T20 World Cup 2026 has become even more critical after the International Cricket Council (ICC)’s 24-hour deadline passed without any official response from Dhaka.
BCB’s situation worsens after missing ICC’s 24-hour deadline
Now, Bangladesh is in real danger of being out of the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2026 to be held in India and Sri Lanka. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has not submitted its response to the ICC on its participation in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026 in India, reports Cricbuzz.
There were reports that the BCB held discussions within the board, spoke to government officials and took advice from player representatives, but nothing was formally communicated to the ICC within the given time. As the deadline approached, BCB’s silence further compounded the problem.
Also read: Bangladesh ordered to use ‘Captain Liton Das is Hindu’ narrative to end T20 World Cup row with India, ICC
The report suggested that ICC officials in Dubai waited for a full 24 hours in the hope of clarity from Bangladesh. But BCB did not respond and now ICC is also not ready to wait any longer.
ICC free to act as Scotland set to replace Bangladesh at T20 World Cup 2026
The ICC had already made it clear that they would go ahead with the replacement if Bangladesh did not agree to play their matches in Mumbai and Kolkata as planned, and now they are free to take that decision. At this stage, Scotland have emerged as the strongest option to replace the Tigers in the showpiece event based on their positioning.
The process of sealing Scotland’s place in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2026 is now expected to move forward at a fast pace as the global body does not want any delay in the showpiece tournament. Now, there is no last minute miracle, as the ICC Board had already voted on the matter, and the final decision was clearly placed in the hands of Bangladesh.
Bangladesh had the whole day (22 January) to decide whether the team would come to India for the tournament or not. Nevertheless, the BCB firmly stuck to its stance and reiterated its concerns about player safety. Bangladesh has now lost control of the situation by not responding within the ICC deadline.
Also read: ICC gives clean chit to Eden Gardens while Bangladesh raises security issues for T20 WC 2026
Their dream of T20 World Cup 2026 ended due to the strict stance of Bangladesh government.
On the other hand, the Bangladesh government made it clear that allowing the team to play in India is not acceptable, regardless of any assurances given by the ICC, citing past incidents and lack of confidence in proper security arrangements.
If Scotland are officially confirmed in the coming days, it will go down as one of the most shocking World Cup exits in recent history. Asif Nazrul, sports advisor to the Bangladesh government, said, “Now this ICC tournament is being held in India. No matter how much the ICC says that there is no security threat, the ICC has no country of its own.”
The country where my player was not safe – and where the Indian Cricket Board, an extended arm of the government, failed or was unwilling to provide him security under pressure from extremists – is hosting this tournament.
