Syed Ashraful Haque, the former General Secretary of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), has revealed that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Mohsin Naqvi might have played a significant role in Bangladesh’s ouster from T20 World Cup 2026.
Bangladesh had refused to play their T20 World Cup matches in India, citing security concerns, and as a result, the Tigers were forced to withdraw from the tournament. They had expressed their desire to play all their matches in Sri Lanka, just like Pakistan.
This was after Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman was released by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) ahead of IPL 2026. Scotland replaced Bangladesh in Group C, which also had West Indies, England, Italy and Nepal.
Pakistan, too, later announced that they would boycott their match against arch-rivals India while standing in solidarity with Bangladesh.
‘Aminul Islam influenced by Mohsin Naqvi’: Ex-BCB general secretary
However, Pakistan later withdrew their boycott and played their match against India as scheduled. Haque called the current BCB chief Aminul Islam “naive”.
“As a cricket administrator, I focus on honesty and commitment. Aminul Islam, likely being naive, was influenced by Mr Mohsin Naqvi, the current ACC president, who persuaded him to go along. At the end of the day, who won?” Haque told RevSportz.
Haque added that because of this controversy, Bangladesh risks becoming a “laughing stock” following the actions of a “few individuals and the government”.
“At the time, the government rode a wave of anti-Indian sentiment. Yet, there is no reason to oppose India except for the issue of harboring a criminal, as claimed. Otherwise, Bangladesh needed the support of Indian cricket administrators.
“In Jagmohan Dalmiya’s era, we had respect and a strong position; now we risk becoming a laughing stock due to the actions of a few individuals and the government,” he stated.
Pakistan faced India in a Group A match of T20 World Cup 2026 in Colombo on 15 February.
The Men in Green lost to the defending champions by 61 runs, and came into the Namibia game with a must-win situation. The Salman Ali Agha-led side, though, clinched an easy 102-run win over Namibia to advance to the Super Eight stage.
The India-Pakistan match grabbed the headlines for the wrong reasons as well. India skipper Suryakumar Yadav and his Pakistan counterpart Salman Ali Agha refused to shake hands during the toss.
This also continued the trend of no handshakes between players of the two countries, which started from the Asia Cup late last year, amid tense political relations between the two countries. Both India and Pakistan will next set their sights on their respective Super Eight groups.
While India will face South Africa in their first Super Eight match in Ahmedabad on Sunday, Pakistan will lock horns with New Zealand in Colombo on Saturday.
