The Bangladesh government has taken a rather bizarre step after boycotting the 2026 T20 World Cup co-hosted by India and Bangladesh, with the shooting contingent reportedly cleared to travel to India to take part in the Asian Rifle and Pistol Championship in New Delhi, scheduled to be held from February 2 to 14, later next month.
According to the Daily Sun, a Bangladeshi news outlet, the Ministry of Youth and Sports has cleared the shooting contingent to compete despite the government’s security concerns about the Bangladesh national cricket team and their trip to India for the scheduled games in India.
“The Bangladeshi team consists of only one athlete and one coach, which makes it a very small group. Moreover, the organizers have assured us that there will be no security issues,” said Youth and Sports Secretary Md Mahbub-ul-Alam.
“The event will be held indoors in a protected area, so we don’t anticipate any security concerns. After considering all aspects, the government has approved the shooting team’s trip,” he added.
Bangladesh government contrast
During the whole T20 World Cup boycott saga Bangladesh Sports Advisor to Interim Government Asif Nazrul criticized the International Cricket Council (ICC) for not taking into account their concerns and that the security risks of playing in the country would not change.
Bangladesh requested the ICC change the venues of the group stages to Kolkata and Mumbai after the pacer, Mustafizur Rahman, was released by Kolkata Knight Riders based on the directive of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)
With the ICC not complying with Bangladesh’s demands and making sure of security concerns, they decided to boycott the ICC exhibition event completely. As a result, they were subsequently replaced by Scotland.
According to the report, government officials believe that the shooting tournament does not pose significant security threats, given that the tournament will also be held in an indoor environment at a secure location.
Another report by the Daily Star suggests that Nazrul spoke to the Bangladesh Shooting Sports Federation before also giving the go-ahead to the government order.
For now, the approval of the shooting team’s trip suggests that Bangladesh’s security stance is not blanket against sporting events in India.
– The end
Issued by:
Amar Panicker
Published on:
January 28, 2026
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