We want to play the World Cup, just not in India. Player safety comes first.” — Aminul Islam Bulbul, BCB President

Bangladesh has reiterated its refusal to travel to India for next month’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, effectively placing its participation in the tournament under serious doubt.

The decision was confirmed on Thursday following a high-level meeting in Dhaka attended by Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) President Aminul Islam Bulbul, BCB CEO Nizamuddin, Sports Adviser Asif Nazrul, and several national team players, according to ESPN Cricinfo.

“Our only demand is to play the World Cup — but not in India,” Bulbul told reporters, making it clear that Bangladesh remains unwilling to compromise on venue-related concerns.

The ICC has already rejected Bangladesh’s request to relocate its matches to Sri Lanka and has confirmed that there will be no changes to the tournament’s schedule or groupings. Despite this, the BCB plans to return to the global governing body with a renewed proposal.

“We will go back to the ICC with our plan to play in Sri Lanka,” Bulbul said. He also criticized the ICC’s reported 24-hour deadline for compliance, stating that such an ultimatum was unreasonable.

“If Bangladesh is excluded, the ICC will miss out on nearly 200 million cricket fans. It will be their loss,” he added.

Bulbul emphasized Bangladesh’s importance to global cricket, noting the sport’s growing international footprint.

“Cricket is entering the Olympics in 2028, Brisbane in 2032, and India is bidding for 2036. Excluding a major cricket-loving country like Bangladesh would be a failure,” he said.

Sports Adviser Asif Nazrul reinforced the board’s stance, stating that there was “no scope” for revisiting the decision. He said the security concerns cited by Bangladesh were based on real events rather than speculation.

“These concerns arose from a real incident where one of our top players was forced to bow to extremists, and the Indian cricket board asked him to leave India,” Nazrul said, without naming the player.

“We remain hopeful that the ICC will allow us to play in Sri Lanka.”

The standoff follows Bangladesh’s announcement on January 4 that it would not play its World Cup matches in India after Mustafizur Rahman was released by his IPL franchise amid rising political tensions between the two countries. Soon after, the BCB formally requested the ICC to shift its fixtures to Sri Lanka.

Despite the hardline stance, Bulbul previously acknowledged that Bangladesh’s players are eager to compete in the tournament.

“Who doesn’t want to play in the World Cup?” he said earlier this week.

“The players want to play, the government wants Bangladesh to play, but we do not believe India is safe for our players.”

The T20 World Cup is scheduled to begin on February 7, with Bangladesh placed in Group C alongside England. The team is currently set to play all its group matches in Kolkata and Mumbai, though those plans now appear increasingly uncertain.