India Offered Full Security to Bangladesh Team Amid ICC–BCB Row: BCCI Vice President Rajeev Shukla

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) stated that although India has assured the Bangladeshi cricket team of complete security, it was not possible to change the ICC Men's T20 World Cup schedule at this late stage. Following the official confirmation by the International Cricket Council that Scotland would take Bangladesh's spot in the forthcoming event, BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla remarked.

A larger conflict involving several cricket boards and political organisations has grown out of tensions over the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) had serious safety concerns about playing their scheduled matches in India during the event, which is jointly hosted by Sri Lanka and India, sparking the controversy. Scotland took their place in the T20 World Cup 2026 lineup after Bangladesh withdrew from the competition after the ICC denied their request to move matches outside of India due to security concerns.

BCCI Vice President Rajeev Shukla Gets Candid:

After a week of talks between the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the international governing body, the ICC's ruling was made public on Saturday, January 24, 2026. The Bangladeshi government's refusal to authorise the national team's trip to India was the catalyst for Bangladesh's withdrawal.

#WATCH | Delhi | On Scotland will replace Bangladesh at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, BCCI Vice-President Rajeev Shukla says, "We wanted Bangladesh to play and we also assured full security, but since they have made this decision, it is very difficult to change the entire… pic.twitter.com/HZ7XecHOAX

— ANI (@ANI) January 26, 2026

India Today quotes Rajeev Shukla saying, “We wanted Bangladesh to play, and we also assured full security, but since they have made this decision, it is very difficult to change the entire schedule at the last moment. This is why Scotland was brought in."

The IBC Board requested that the BCB confirm Bangladesh's participation in the competition within a day after its meeting on Wednesday. The ICC used its established governance and qualification process to find a replacement side after receiving no confirmation before the deadline.

As the top-ranked T20I team that had not initially qualified for the competition, Scotland was chosen as the replacement. In the ICC T20I rankings, they are now rated 14th, ahead of a number of teams who are already competing, including Namibia, the United Arab Emirates, Nepal, the United States of America, Canada, Oman, and Italy.

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