BCB to ask ICC to relocate fixtures to Sri Lanka after BCCI “advises” IPL team to release star fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman.
Bangladesh will formally request that its matches in next month’s T20 World Cup be moved from India to Sri Lanka, a senior government adviser announced Sunday, escalating a cricket dispute rooted in recent political tensions between the two neighbors.
The decision came a day after Indian cricket authorities pressured the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to release Bangladesh fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman from his lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL) contract.
“The board should inform that, where a Bangladeshi cricketer cannot play in India despite being contracted, the entire Bangladeshi cricket team cannot feel safe going to play in the World Cup,” said Asif Nazrul, Youth and Sports Adviser in Bangladesh’s interim government, in a statement carried by the state-run BSS news agency.
Nazrul said he has ordered the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to write to the International Cricket Council (ICC) to request the relocation. “I have also instructed the board to request that Bangladesh’s World Cup matches should be held in Sri Lanka,” he added.
The T20 World Cup, co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, begins February 7. Bangladesh is scheduled to play four group-stage matches in India, while arch-rival Pakistan’s matches are already slated for Sri Lanka under a pre-existing neutral-venue agreement.
The crisis was triggered on Saturday when the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) “advised” the Kolkata Knight Riders to release Mustafizur. The left-arm pacer had been bought by KKR for over $1 million in December’s auction.
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia cited “recent developments” as the reason for the advice. KKR, owned by Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan, later stated the release was done “following due process and consultations.”
BCB president Aminul Islam Bulbul said the board would hold an emergency meeting Sunday night. “The dignity and security of our cricketers are our top priorities, and we will take a decision at the appropriate time keeping these in mind,” he told reporters.
The sporting rift mirrors worsening political relations. Ties have deteriorated since the 2024 political changes in Bangladesh that saw Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, a close ally of India, replaced by an interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus. India’s foreign ministry recently condemned what it called “unremitting hostility against minorities” in Bangladesh, a charge Yunus has dismissed as exaggerated.
In a further retaliatory step, Nazrul said he has asked Bangladeshi authorities to block the broadcast of the upcoming IPL season, which begins March 26.
The ICC has not yet commented on the potential last-minute fixture change, which would pose a significant logistical challenge weeks before the global tournament begins.
