The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday rejected the request from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to shift its team's T20 World Cup fixtures to Sri Lanka, saying the matches will proceed as scheduled since there was no credible threat to the safety of Bangladesh players, officials or fans at any of the tournament venues in India.
The decision was taken at an ICC Board meeting held via video conference, which was convened to discuss the situation after the BCB raised concerns and sought a change in venues.
"The ICC Board noted that relocating matches under the present circumstances could jeopardise the sanctity of ICC events and undermine the organisation's neutrality as a global governing body," the ICC said in a statement.
According to the ICC, the Board reviewed multiple security assessments, including independent evaluations, all of which concluded that there was no credible threat to Bangladesh players.
ICC sources told PTI that out of 16 members, 14 voted against BCB's relocation request. The ICC has given BCB one more day to reflect and take a final position.
"Of all the members, only BCB and Pakistan voted in favour of the relocation request while all other voted against it. Bangladesh was given time till January 21 to confirm its participation but they have been given one more day by the ICC Board to state their position," said the ICC source.
The ICC also said that making changes to the schedule at such a late stage was not feasible and that altering fixtures in the absence of a verified security risk could set an "undesirable precedent" for future global events.
The world governing body said its management had held a series of meetings and correspondences with the BCB in recent weeks, sharing detailed information on the tournament's security arrangements. These included venue-specific plans and assurances of layered protection involving federal and state law enforcement agencies.
BCB president Aminul Islam said he is hoping for a miracle from the ICC.
"I am hoping for a miracle from the ICC. Who doesn't want to play in the World Cup? The Bangladesh players want to play the World Cup. The Bangladesh government wants Bangladesh to play the World Cup," he was quoted as saying in a ESPNCricinfo report.
"But we don't think India is safe for our players. A government doesn't only consider the players, but they consider all, when it takes a decision."
He said he would speak to the Bangladesh government one more time on the matter.
"I asked the ICC board for time to talk to my government for one last time," Aminul said in the report.
"They said it's a valid point, and gave me 24 or 48 hours to get back to them. I don't want to put pressure on the government. We know that India is not secure for us. We remain in the stance that we want to play in Sri Lanka. I know the ICC denied us but we will talk to the government one more time. I will inform the ICC about the government's feedback."
An ICC spokesperson said the organisation had engaged in “sustained and constructive dialogue” with the BCB with the objective of ensuring Bangladesh’s participation in the tournament.
"Independent security assessments, comprehensive venue-level security plans and formal assurances from host authorities consistently concluded that there is no credible or verifiable threat to the safety or security of the Bangladesh team in India," the spokesperson said.
The ICC, however, expressed concern that the BCB continued to link its participation to what it described as a "single, isolated and unrelated development” involving one of its players' participation in a domestic league, a matter the ICC said had no bearing on the tournament’s security framework.
The Board reiterated that venue and scheduling decisions are guided by objective threat assessments, host guarantees and agreed participation terms, which apply uniformly to all 20 teams in the competition.
"In the absence of any independent security findings that materially compromise safety, the ICC is unable to relocate fixtures. Doing so would carry significant logistical and scheduling consequences for other teams and fans worldwide, and would also create far-reaching precedent-related challenges that risk undermining the neutrality, fairness, and integrity of ICC governance," the spokesperson said.
Bangladesh government's sports advisor Asif Nazrul on Tuesday had reiterated that under no condition would the national team travel to India.
It is highly likely that if Bangladesh decide to pull out of the tournament, Scotland may replace Bangladesh as per current rankings.
The crisis was triggered by the removal of Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman from Kolkata Knight Riders' roster for this year's Indian Premier League on BCCI's instructions for unspecified "developments all around".
Citing security concerns and national pride, the BCB responded by announcing its national team won't travel to India for its T20 World Cup group stage games in Kolkata and Mumbai.
BCB wants to play each of the four group stage matches in Sri Lanka, where the marquee India-Pakistan clash will also be held as per the mutually agreed arrangement for ICC events until 2027.
In their last meeting with ICC officials in Dhaka, the BCB had proposed swapping positions with Ireland in Group B, which features tournament co-hosts Sri Lanka, Australia, Oman and Zimbabwe.
Such a move would allow Bangladesh to remain in Sri Lanka for their group engagements.
The bilateral relations between India and Bangladesh have deteriorated in recent months, exacerbated by the killings of Hindus in Bangladesh.
