'Govt's Decision Not To Play In India Due To Security Concerns': Bangladesh Sport Adviser Asif Nazrul On T20 World Cup Venue Impasse

Amid the International Cricket Council (ICC) refusing Bangladesh Cricket Board's (BCB) request to shift their upcoming T20 World Cup matches outside India, Asif Nazrul, adviser to the interim government of Bangladesh on Thursday stated that they won't travel to India and it is the government's decision not to play in India due to security concerns.

Nazrul said that there is no opportunity to reverse the decision to travel to India to participate in the T20 World Cup. He mentioned that the ICC and the Indian government failed to convince them on security concerns in India.

This decision was announced after a meeting in Dhaka between Nazrul, BCB president Aminul Islam, CEO Nizamuddin, and several national team players. Nurul Hasan, Shamim Hossain, Hasan Mahmud, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Jaker Ali, Tanzid Hasan and Saif Hassan were among the Bangladeshi cricketers present in the meeting.

"Let me tell you clearly. It is the government's decision not to play in India due to security concerns," Asif Nazrul said on Thursday.

"ICC has failed to convince us on the security question. ICC has not taken any stand on our grievances. Even the Indian government did not communicate with us, or try to assuage our fears, they haven't said that it was an isolated incident, they haven't apologised, and they haven't proposed any new security measures. The ICC hasn't shown us any goodwill either," he said.

"We haven't lost hopes yet. We hope ICC will understand our genuine security risk concerns, and allow us to play in Sri Lanka. All of us want that we play the World Cup, because our cricketers have done tremendous hard work. There is no improvement in the security threat in India. Our apprehensions of security threats in India are not based on analysis. Security threats are real. A top-class Bangladesh player [Mustafizur Rahman] was removed from playing in India, at the dictate of BCCI," Nazrul added.

ICC on Wednesday rejected the BCB's request to move their matches out of India for the upcoming ICC Men's T20 World Cup via video conference, which was convened to discuss the way forward.

The T20 World Cup will kick off on February 7, with India and Sri Lanka to co-host the tournament. There has been some strain in India's ties with Bangladesh over rising incidents of crimes against minorities in the country. Last year, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had asked Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to release pacer Mustafizur Rahman from their Indian Premier League 2026 squad amid demands following atrocities against minorities in Bangladesh.

Following Rahman's removal from the IPL, BCB cited growing concerns about the safety and security of the Bangladesh contingent as the reason for not travelling to India for the 2026 T20 World Cup.

"Asif Nazrul and several cricketers from the Bangladesh national team were present at the Inter Continental Hotel in the capital. The president of the Bangladesh Cricket Board was also there. Asif Nazrul clearly stated that the interim government will under no circumstances send Bangladeshi cricketers to play in India, " an freelance journalist Amrita Malangi told ANI.

"Nazrul emphasised the security issues involved, and as a journalist, my impression is that he meant that India has not provided Bangladesh with adequate security assurances," Amrita Malangi added.