Published : 16 Sep 2026, 04:49 AM
Updated : 16 Sep 2026, 11:50 AM
An inquiry committee has found that the Bangladesh national cricket team skipped the recent T20 World Cup following a unilateral decision by former sports advisor Asif Nazrul.
Unveiling its findings on Tuesday, the three-member probe panel formed by the National Sports Council in March revealed that the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) endorsed the ministry's call to withdraw from the tournament.
Headed by AKM Oli Ullah, additional secretary of the administration division at the sports ministry, the inquiry panel included Supreme Court lawyer Faisal Dastagir and former national team captain Habibul Bashar, who currently serves as chief selector.
At a press conference at the NSC, Faisal said the committee had spoken to the people involved and reviewed media reports and other material before reaching its conclusion.
He said the person responsible for Bangladesh not going to the World Cup was the then advisor Nazrul.
“He and the government at the time [interim government] were responsible," Faisal added.
Speaking as a representative of the committee, he said: "Bangladesh should certainly have gone to play in the World Cup."
The 22-page report given to the media says the committee interviewed 12 people and includes summaries of their accounts.
