The political tension in Bangladesh has escalated as the country’s long-standing Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina Wajid has resigned and fled the country with the Chief of Army Staff, Waker-Uz-Zaman, forming an interim government. While many deem that this development has marked the end of the anti-government protests that have been taking place for weeks now, leading to the deaths of hundreds of people, the International Cricket Council (ICC) does not seem convinced to hold the Women’s T20 World Cup there. In all fairness, the situation in the country still stands at a crossroads, amid which staging a multi-national event will not be devoid of risk.
Reports have revealed that the ICC has started informally preparing to move the tourney out of Bangladesh, however, nothing has been stated officially yet. When questioned about ICC’s decision regarding the World Cup, an official was quoted as saying regarding the
“The ICC is closely monitoring developments in coordination with the Bangladesh Cricket Board [BCB], their security agencies, and our own independent security consultants. Our priority is the safety and well-being of all participants.”
In case, the ten-team competition gets moved out of the country, India and Sri Lanka are two potential hosts to stage the tournament at the eleventh hour. However, the ICC will have a lot of work to do to make the transfer as well as the tournament successful. The T20 World Cup which is scheduled to be played between October 3 to October 20 will likely be affected by abundant rain in Sri Lanka during the same time. For India, although, the weather will not be a problem, issuing visas to Pakistan players at such short notice can cause a setback.
Additionally, Bangladesh A team’s departure to Pakistan has also been affected by this political strife. The A team was scheduled to fly to Islamabad on the 7th of August, however, now they will face a delay of as long as 48 hours in leaving the country owing to the temporary closure of Dhaka Airport. Following the development on Monday, a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) statement regarding the A team’s itinerary was released,
“The BCB has confirmed to the PCB their men’s ‘A’ cricket team’s departure for Islamabad has been delayed by 48 hours due to unforeseen circumstances,” the statement read.
“The BCB and PCB have been in regular contact for the past two days and will continue to work together on the revised tour itinerary with further details to follow in due course. The Bangladesh ‘A’ cricket team was due to arrive in Islamabad in the wee hours of Wednesday for two four-day and three 50-over matches from 10-27 August.”
Bangladesh’s senior men’s team is also slated to leave the country for a two-match red-ball series in Pakistan on the 17th of August. PCB is said to have offered the Bangladesh Board to send the players earlier.
Unfortunately, Mashrafe Mortaza, who captained the Bangladesh team to their first quarter-final of an ODI World Cup in 2015 and a member of the Sheikh’s political party, Awami League, as well as the National Parliament, has been one of the targets of the protestors. His residence has, reportedly, been vandalized and burnt down by the anti-government mob.
