‘How can India provide security to Bangladesh team?’:Mustafizur Rahman ‘sad’ after being left out of IPL, reveals BCB director Asif Akbar

The ongoing issue around Mustafizur Rahman’s omission from the IPL has snowballed into a massive controversy. Bangladesh subsequently announced that they will not travel to India for the T20 World Cup, writing to the ICC (International Cricket Council) to relocate their matches. Speaking to Bhaskar English, BCB (Bangladesh Cricket Board) director Asif Akbar opened up at length about the issue, shedding light on Bangladesh’s decision not to travel to India for the T20 World Cup and also the country’s ban on IPL broadcast and streaming. He also spoke about Mustafizur’s reaction to being left out of the IPL. ‘How can India provide security to Bangladesh team?’: Asif Akbar Bangladesh, in their letter to the ICC, highlighted that they are concerned about the ‘safety and security of their players’ if they visit India for the T20 World Cup. Akbar, while echoing the same sentiment, said, “Since the Indian government and IPL officials cannot guarantee the security of one player, how can they provide security to our whole team?” “What if, after a few days, they say that if the Bangladesh team comes, we will stop them, we will protest, then what do we do? A lot of our media workers were expected to go to India as there was huge excitement. Bangladesh loves cricket. But we are feeling insecure about travelling to India for the T20 World Cup,” he added. ‘Want to play at another venue outside India’: Asif Akbar The BCB had held an emergency meeting on Saturday and announced that they will not travel to India for the T20 World Cup. Akbar, who was part of these meetings, shared, “We held two meetings. First, we thought of discussing the matter with the IPL and BCCI and ICC. “But through the Mustafizur Rahman issue, we could understand their mindset and current sentiment, which is against Bangladeshis at the moment. Hence, we decided not to travel to India for the World Cup. We want another venue outside India,” he added. Having said that, the BCB is awaiting ICC’s verdict on this matter. “Our decision is final. We will not go to India to play the T20 World Cup,” he said. Also read: Bangladesh refuses to play World Cup matches in India: Bans IPL broadcast; did BCCI make a mistake by asking KKR to drop Mustafizur? ‘IPL ban a decision by the government’: Asif Akbar Akbar made it clear that the decision to stop the broadcast of IPL in Bangladesh was a decision made by the government. “This is a government’s decision and the BCB has no say in this,” he said. Mustafizur Rahman ‘sad’ after being left out of IPL Mustafizur had scripted history by becoming the most expensive Bangladeshi player in the IPL after Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) splashed a whopping sum of Rs 9.2 crore to sign him at the auction on 16 December. But after facing threats from several groups, the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) instructed KKR to release the player. Akbar shared that Mustafizur, a soft-spoken person, was hurt by this decision. “The BCB had reached out to Mustafizur Rahman after he was released from the IPL. But he is a soft-spoken person who doesn’t talk much. Although he is sad and upset, he is a big believer in fate. He said this (playing in IPL 2026) was not written in his destiny, because of which he was not taken,” he said. Akbar also reiterated BCB’s stance of cancelling Mustafizur’s NOC. “He has every right to feel sad, as this is a big development. The whole country is behind him. Mustafizur is our pride and we have consoled him. We have communicated to him that, at the moment, we are not interested in the IPL. We have also cancelled his NOC and in future, even if KKR include him back, we will not let him go.” He also shared how disappointed they were after Mustafizur’s IPL release. “When Mustafizur was signed by KKR for a massive sum of Rs ₹9.2 crore, the whole of Bangladesh was very excited. We were very happy, especially since Mustafizur would have played for Kolkata, a place with which we share a lot of similarities in terms of language and emotion.” But will Mustafizur play in IPL in the future? “IPL is a big tournament and through this, their behaviour towards our player has come to light. We have been very hurt by what has happened with Mustafizur. We have given him NOC in several circumstances, but what happened now, is in front of your eyes. We have cancelled his NOC for the IPL. Let this IPL go. During next year’s auctions, the BCB will take a call on Mustafizur’s IPL future,” Akbar said. ‘Aware of logistical problem of rescheduling matches, but security more important’ Having sought relocation of their matches in the T20 World Cup, the BCB is aware that rejigging the whole set of fixtures could turn out to be a logistical nightmare. But security is more important, said the BCB director. “We are aware of the logistical problem that might come with the rescheduling of matches. But security matters to us more. The security of our players, fans and media group is more important to us.” ‘India started this, India will have to end this’: Asif Akbar on future of IND-BAN cricket ties So, have India-Bangladesh cricketing ties broken down just like that with Pakistan? Akbar was clear in his response. “Since India have started it, India will have to end this. India is a big country and we want to be good neighbours. We will see what role ICC plays. We also want those who created this dirty politics to realise their mistake,” he said. “We want to work together. We have played Test cricket against India and India have supported us for a long time. But the current scenario is not good at all. We would want the Indian media to focus and highlight that our relations with India improve and so that India and Bangladesh cricket can both progress well,” Akbar opined. Future of India’s tour of Bangladesh India are scheduled to tour Bangladesh for three ODIs and as many T20Is later this year. The three T20Is will be on 1, 3 and 6 September, while the ODI matches would be played on 9, 12 and 13 September. Amidst this controversy, the BCCI has reportedly decided to put the tour on hold. On BCB’s stance on the future of this series, Akbar shared. “We have not thought about this yet.”

Will Shakib Al Hasan play for Bangladesh again? Shakib Al Hasan has been one of Bangladesh’s best-ever cricketers, but he has not returned to the country ever since the Awami League government, a party of which he was an MP (Member of the Parliament), was overthrown by a student-led rebellion in 2024. Earlier, Shakib had expressed his desire to return to Bangladesh and play one full series of ODI, Test and T20Is and then retire. Akbar, while sharing the BCB’s stance on this, said, “Shakib was an MP in the fascist government. He did not express any regret at the fact that his party killed so many people. Shakib has been one of our best players and is a brand.” “We want to give him a proper farewell as well. But under the current circumstances, we will have to face the court. BCB will follow the nation’s guidelines. He will have to play domestic cricket, be selected and then play for the national team once again,” he concluded.