anuary 24, 2026 – The International Cricket Council (ICC) has officially confirmed that Bangladesh will not participate in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 after failing to meet the participation requirements.
In a formal statement, the ICC announced that Scotland will replace Bangladesh in the upcoming mega event co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. Scotland was chosen as the next highest-ranked eligible team that did not qualify originally.
The decision follows Bangladesh’s earlier refusal to play their scheduled group matches in India and requests to move those games to Sri Lanka, citing safety concerns. The ICC stated that board discussions and security reviews were held for over three weeks, but no changes could be made to the original schedule.
According to the ICC release, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) was given a deadline to confirm participation. However, no official confirmation was received within the required time frame. Consequently, the ICC activated the tournament’s alternate team policy and included Scotland in the squad.
Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi commented on the decision, saying that the matter could ultimately be decided by the government and expressing that the situation with Bangladesh was unfortunate.
In related political commentary, Pakistani officials urged solidarity with Bangladesh, saying that equal treatment should be ensured for all cricketing nations.
With this development, Scotland will join the tournament alongside other qualified teams, while Bangladesh faces a disappointing absence from one of cricket’s biggest events.
