No sanctions and the promise of hosting an ICC event -- Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Aminul Islam Bulbul on Monday was thrilled with the outcomes of his “unbelievably successful” trip to Lahore, but not everyone shared his enthusiasm.
“The ICC was probably considering some decisions that wouldn’t have been good for us. But we managed the situation so that our cricketing journey remains smooth in the future,” Bulbul said to T-Sports on Monday, looking visibly relieved.
On Sunday, Bulbul had flown to Lahore on very short notice, under the invitation of Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi to take part in a tripartite dialogue with the International Cricket Council (ICC) deputy chairman Imran Khawaja and PCB officials.
The following day, ICC confirmed in a statement that Bangladesh would not face financial or administrative penalties for refusing to travel to India for the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup over security concerns and would also receive hosting rights for an ICC event before the 2031 ODI World Cup, which they are scheduled to co-host with India.
The BCB and its president portrayed the developments as major achievements, and took it as a sign of tensions between them and the ICC easing off after the standoff over the T20 World Cup, which ended with Bangladesh getting replaced by Scotland.
However, former BCB general secretary Syed Ashraful Huq questioned whether the ICC had ever seriously intended to punish Bangladesh as teams that have withdrawn from World Cup matches or from ICC events in the past have never been sanctioned.
“They have never fined a team before. Perhaps it was mentioned verbally just to create pressure. If we are celebrating this, it suggests our organisers care more about money than the good of the game,” Ashraful told The Daily Star yesterday.
He described the damage to Bangladesh cricket as “irreparable,” pointing out that players like Litton Das and Mustafizur Rahman missed a global tournament during their prime.
“Missing a World Cup because of an ego-driven stance is far more damaging than losing millions in fines,” he said, adding that similar dialogue with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and ICC should have happened earlier. “I’ve been saying from the beginning -- talk, talk, talk. Everything can be solved through discussion.”
Meanwhile, ex-Bangladesh captain and former BCB director Akram Khan urged caution, fearing underneath ICC’s positive announcements, resentment may be simmering.
“The ICC will not take this lightly. Whatever is said publicly, we must be extremely careful in how we deal with them going forward,” Akram said.
Akram admitted the situation had spiralled beyond control and agreed that while BCB’s security concerns were valid, some decisions may have been made too hastily.
“I support the initial security concerns, but we should have waited for more discussions before taking other steps. The ICC is not like FIFA -- sometimes what is said doesn’t immediately materialise. We’ll only truly understand the consequences over time,” he added.
Another crucial development from the talks in Lahore was the Pakistan government reversing its decision to boycott their group-stage match against India in Colombo on February 15, following requests from many stakeholders, including Bulbul.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had earlier said they were boycotting the match in solidarity with Bangladesh. The primary reason behind ICC’s urgent talks in Lahore was to convince Pakistan to reconsider.
Although the ICC did not specify what it had to do to appease PCB in its official statement, it did enough to ensure that the India-Pakistan match, one of cricket’s most commercially valuable fixtures, will go on as scheduled.
Ashraful claimed Bangladesh had been used as a “pawn” in a larger geopolitical struggle, suggesting Pakistan had emerged as a key power broker through the episode.
After all the hoopla, Pakistan and the other teams will carry on with their World Cup campaigns as usual, while Bangladesh will remain absent from the global stage.
