The International Cricket Council (ICC) has given the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) 24 to 48 hours to reach a final decision on its participation in the T20 World Cup in India, but the latter remains hopeful that the apex cricket body will fulfil its demand. On Wednesday, the ICC held a meeting with all full member nations, during which voting took place. It was decided that the original schedule of the 20-team tournament would not be changed, and that Bangladesh would be required to visit India to feature in the competition.
Ever since the first week of January, the BCB have been adamant about not playing in India, asking the ICC to shift their matches to Sri Lanka. However, ICC refused to do so, saying there is no security threat to Bangladesh in India and that they should therefore fulfil their obligations and play all their Group C matches across Kolkata and Mumbai as per the original schedule.
On Wednesday, the ICC issued a statement, confirming that Bangladesh would have to play their matches in India and there would be no change to the schedule. According to reports, the BCB have been given 24 hours to take a call, and if they opt not to travel, they would be replaced by Scotland in Group C.
Shortly after ICC’s press release, the BCB President, Aminul Islam, said he is hopeful the Jay Shah-led body will reconsider its decision and reschedule Bangladesh’s matches in Sri Lanka.
“I am hoping for a miracle from the ICC. Who doesn’t want to play the World Cup? We can’t really comment after the ICC’s press release. The meeting went on for an hour and a half. We explained to the ICC board the reasons for our decision before the voting began. We didn’t want to go into voting. We stepped back,” Cricbuzz quoted Aminul as saying.
“The Bangladesh players want to play the World Cup. The Bangladesh government wants Bangladesh to play the World Cup. But we don’t think India is safe for our players,” he added.
Sri Lanka refused
Earlier, the BCB had asked the ICC to swap Bangladesh with Ireland in Group B which would lead to the team playing all of its T20 World Cup matches in Sri Lanka. However, Aminul claimed that Sri Lanka refused to have a new team in their group.
Originally, Bangladesh are in Group C alongside England, Nepal, Italy and the West Indies while Sri Lanka are in Group B alongside Ireland, Australia, Oman and Zimbabwe.
“We asked them to shift the matches to Sri Lanka. We said that we can switch with Ireland or Zimbabwe. It would have been the easiest way. But Sri Lanka said that we don’t want a new team in our group. After the vote, I told them that I want one last chance to tell my government. They said it’s a valid point, and gave me 24 or 48 hours to get back to them,” said Aminul.
“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 government’s feedback to the ICC. A government doesn’t only consider the players, but they consider all, when it takes a decision,” he added.
