T20 World Cup 2026: So what is the truth over Bangladesh's bizarre T20 WC boycott? Initially, it was understood that the government took the shock call, then there was an U-turn made by sports advisor Asif Nazrul. The sports advisor claimed that the players were the ones who wanted the boycott. While it seemed very strange that players would take a call such as this, it is now understood that what was claimed officially was far from the truth. 

‘That was funny’

“That was funny,” a player said on Nazrul’s comments under conditions of anonymity to The Daily Star.

“You heard what he said!” another player said with a smirk.

“What can we say, we have no one. We are helpless. We don’t know what to say since we had no hand in this [World Cup exclusion]. Many things don’t need to be verbalised to be understood. We didn’t get any help from any side,” the player added.

Even a board director was surprised at Nazrul's U-turn. 

“He [Nazrul] had said something different before and is saying something else now. He himself had declared previously that the team will not go,” a BCB director said on conditions of anonymity.

Bangladesh Suffer And How

Not Pakistan, nor India and not even ICC - no one has suffered more than Bangladesh in this fiasco. Bangladesh is not playing the ongoing T20 WC, while Pakistan and India are playing and the apex cricketing body is also not going to have losses. 

It is the fans and the cricketers who are going to suffer, not Nazrul. Bangladesh can now thank their lucky stars that ICC did not levy any sanctions against them.