T20 World Cup 2026: The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), on Sunday, January 4, has requested the International Cricket Council (ICC) to relocate Bangladesh’s matches in the T20 World Cup 2026 out of India.
In an official statement, the BCB asked ICC to move Bangladesh’s World Cup matches out of India, due to ‘safety and security’ concerns of the Bangladeshi players.
However, Bangladesh’s formal request to shift games out of India has faced tough questions. Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra took a dig at Bangladesh’s request.
Aakash Chopra Reflects On Bangladesh’s Request Of Relocating Their Matches Out Of India
While speaking on his official Instagram handle, Aakash Chopra said that there’s only one month left for the tournament to start, and the ball is in the ICC’s court, and they will figure out how to proceed with the matter.
“Now, there is only one month left (T20 WC will start from February 7). The ball is in the ICC’s court. They will figure out what to do,” Aakash Chopra said on his official Instagram handle.
He added that logistically, it will be a challenge since it is not easy to reschedule a match on such short notice.
“Logistically, it is going to be a little difficult. Because it is not easy to reshuffle a lot of matches at such short notice. If you are thinking about the Champions Trophy, India had said six months ago that if we want to play, we can’t go to Pakistan. If you want to hold the tournament without us, you can. So, that was India’s stance at that point in time. And the ICC had a lot of time to manage this. There is not much time left to overcome the logistical challenge. It is an interesting situation,” he concluded.
Bangladesh Scheduled To Start T20 WC Campaign On February 7
Bangladesh have been placed in Group C of the T20 World Cup 2026, alongside England, West Indies, Nepal, and Italy. Bangladesh are supposed to play their T20 World Cup group fixtures in Kolkata and Mumbai. But the decision on new venues is yet to be taken by the ICC.
The T20 World Cup 2026 will kick off on February 7, with the first match of the tournament taking place between Pakistan and the Netherlands at Colombo, on February 7.