BCB hopes for ‘miracle’ after ICC rejects T20 World Cup 2026 request; ‘I don't want to put pressure on the government’

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Aminul Islam hoped for a "miracle" and will approach to the country's government one last time as far as their T20 World Cup 2026 participation is concerned after the International Cricket Council (ICC) rejected their plea for a venue change.

BCB had requested ICC to shift their T20 World Cup 2026 matches out of India owning to security concerns which was in protest against Mustafizur Rahman's unceremonious removal from the Indian Premier League.

Assuring “no threat to Bangladesh players, media persons, officials and fans” at the T20 Word Cup 2026 in India, the ICC cited logistical nightmares behind rejecting BCB's request. “It was not feasible to make changes so close to the tournament,” said ICC in a statement.

The ICC's decision came in after a virtual meeting and voting process which was attended by the board directors off all the full member nations and the apex body top brass. Islam was also present at the meeting.

Reacting after ICC's decision, Islam said "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," Islam, who played 13 Tests and 39 ODIs for Bangladesh, said.