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Published : 10 Jan 2026, 11:24 PM
The ICC chief Jay Shah is moving to defuse a rapidly intensifying standoff over the Tigers travelling to India to play in the T20 World Cup, NDTV reports.
Shah is scheduled for talks with the Indian cricket board on Sunday, the report says, as Bangladesh maintains it will not travel to India under the current conditions.
Shah is set to meet BCCI officials in Vadodara on the sidelines of the first India–New Zealand one-day international, where he is attending as a special invitee of the Baroda Cricket Association, it added.
In its first communication to the global governing body of the sport, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) asked for its World Cup matches to be moved out of India, suggesting Sri Lanka as an alternative host. However, a second letter altered the nature of the dispute, the report said.
NDTV reports that Bangladesh made it clear the issue now goes beyond logistics, saying national pride has been hurt -- a reference widely linked to the fallout over Mustafizur Rahman’s sudden removal from the Indian Premier League (IPL). It demanded individual security cover for every member of its World Cup contingent if travel to India is unavoidable. The demand covers players, coaches, support staff and officials.
The ICC has yet to issue a formal response, leaving Shah with the task of reviewing the existing security and tournament framework with the BCCI and the ICC operations team to identify where Bangladesh feels marginalised or insufficiently reassured, according to NDTV.
The report, however, notes that paperwork alone will not resolve the crisis. The ICC must engage directly with the BCB to craft an arrangement that allows Dhaka to maintain a sense of agency, whether through enhanced security guarantees, clearer communication or limited logistical flexibility, without undermining the integrity of the tournament.
Bangladesh’s participation is critical, NDTV said. Excluding a qualified team would trigger legal and political complications, requiring an ICC Board vote and risking instability within both the ICC and the Asian Cricket Council.
The situation is further complicated by resistance within Bangladesh’s own establishment, with Sport Advisor Asif Nazrul publicly opposing the current plan, framing it as an insult to national dignity, the report claimed.
The Indian news outlet said Shah’s challenge is to act not as India’s cricket chief, but as the neutral custodian of the global game, tasked with restoring trust before the dispute spirals further.
