‘Can’t exclude politics from sport’:Jonty Rhodes reacts to Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup omission, says ‘tough for the players’

Former South African cricketer Jonty Rhodes said that one cannot separate politics from sport, right after Bangladesh were excluded from the T20 World Cup 2026. The International Cricket Council (ICC), on 24 January, officially confirmed Scotland as Bangladesh’s replacement at the event. This came after Bangladesh had remained firm on their refusal to tour India for the tournament, citing security reasons. Despite several rounds of discussion, both the ICC and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) remained firm in their respective stances. Jonty Rhodes says politics cannot be separated from sports The former cricketer was at a T20 World Cup promotional event where he was asked about Bangladesh’s exclusion from the T20 World Cup. “You always kind of think, let’s keep politics out of sport. I’ve come from South Africa where the apartheid government was given sporting and economic sanctions because the global government wanted to put pressure on them to change their way. And I saw that change. So you can’t exclude politics from sports. For Bangladesh, the players, it’s very tough,” he said. Rhodes however, expressed excitement about the T20 World Cup and reminded everyone how unpredictable the shortest format is. He stated, “The T20 World Cup now has 20 teams. I think what the ICC is doing is fantastic, hosting a 20-team tournament.” “I live in India for five months of the year, so I’m looking forward to the World Cup being held in my home. As for who might win, who might reach the semi-finals, it’s very difficult to predict. In T20 cricket, one player can change the game in 10 minutes,” the 55-year-old added. Also read: ‘If we signed Jasprit Bumrah and removed him…’: Bangladesh coach says players ‘disappointed’, but life moves on after T20 World Cup drama Why did the ICC exclude Bangladesh and replace them with Scotland? The controversy started with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) removing Bangladesh’s Mustafizur Rahman from IPL 2026 after threats from several groups in the midst of reports of anti-Hindu violence in Bangladesh. The BCB subsequently held an emergency meeting and decided to not travel to India for security reasons. The ICC and the BCB engaged in several rounds of discussions and the apex body also conducted security assessments based on Bangladesh’s claims. However, Bangladesh’s government announced they would not allow their national team to travel to India and were subsequently removed from the T20 World Cup. Scotland was picked as Bangladesh’s replacement because they were the highest-ranked team among those that had not qualified for the T20 World Cup. Richie Berrington and his men now will now play in Group C with three matches in Kolkata and one in Mumbai. Also read: ‘Pakistan may also withdraw from T20 World Cup 2026’: PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi backs Bangladesh; Uganda could be PAK’s replacement Pakistan offers support to Bangladesh Pakistan offered support to Bangladesh after they were excluded from the T20 World Cup. Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi, speaking to reporters, had also stated that Pakistan will decide on their T20 World Cup participation only after speaking with their government. “Our stance will be what the government of Pakistan instructs me,” Naqvi said, adding, “The Prime Minister is not in Pakistan right now. When he returns, I’ll be able to give you our final decision. It’s the government’s decision. We obey them, not the ICC.” Naqvi also accused the ICC of ‘double standards’ and called out the apex body for ‘injustice’ after Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup exclusion. “You can’t have double standards. You can’t say for one country India) they can do whatever they want and for the others to have to do the complete opposite. That’s why we’ve taken this stand, and made clear that Bangladesh have had an injustice done to them. They should play in the World Cup, they are a major stakeholder in cricket,’ he added.