T20 World Cup 2026: Bangladesh to not challenge ICC’s decision to replace them

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) have confirmed that they will not challenge the International Cricket Council (ICC)’s decision to replace Bangladesh with Scotland in the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. The announcement was made following a BCB board meeting held in Dhaka on Saturday.

BCB media committee chairman Amzad Hossain clarified that the board has accepted the ICC’s ruling and will not pursue any form of arbitration or dispute resolution. His statement came amid reports suggesting that the BCB had approached the ICC’s dispute resolution committee, claims which he firmly denied.

“We have accepted the decision of the ICC board. Since the ICC has said that we cannot go and play or they cannot shift our games to Sri Lanka, in this case we cannot go and play in India. Our position remains the same. We are not going to any separate arbitration or anything here,” Amzad said.

Bangladesh’s replacement was confirmed after an ICC Board meeting last week, where the BCB were informed that failure to travel to India for the tournament would result in them being removed from the competition.

According to Amzad, the issue was subsequently discussed at the highest level within the Bangladesh government. Amzad further revealed that the ICC sought a response from the BCB within a 24-hour deadline after being informed of the government’s stance.

“After the ICC board meeting, there was a cabinet meeting of the Bangladesh government and a decision was made there. The decision clearly stated that our team will not be able to go to India. This decision has been communicated by the government. After that, the ICC asked us to reply within 24 hours. We told them politely that it is not possible for us to go and play according to this fixture,” he added.

With Bangladesh unwilling to travel to India and no alternative venue approved, the ICC moved ahead with Scotland as their replacement for the tournament.

During the same board meeting, the BCB were also informed that Ishtiaque Sadeque had resigned from his role as a board director, citing personal reasons.

The BCB’s decision not to contest the ICC ruling effectively brings closure to the matter, confirming Bangladesh’s absence from the upcoming T20 World Cup.