The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has responded to the criticism that the board had been facing after umpire Sharfuddoula Ibne Shahid Saikat was officiating in the India vs New Zealand 1st ODI.
“He (Saikat) is ICC contracted umpire and we are saying this clearly that he is not contracted with us (BCB),” BCB’s umpire department chairman Iftekhar Rahman told Cricbuzz. “Now, in our contract it is written that when he has any ICC assignment, he will automatically be on leave from us. It will be an automatic leave and I don’t need to give any NOC. In the job contract he has with me, it is written that if he has any ICC engagement, he must be automatically released. There is no authority for me to decide whether I give permission or not,” he said.
A lot of chatter had been going around after Saikat was seen performing the duties in Baroda on Sunday.
There has been a lot controversy going on after Mustafizur Rahman’s exit from IPL. KKR stated in a release earlier, that Mustafizur has been released from the squad following due process.
“Kolkata Knight Riders confirms that BCCI/IPL as the regulator of IPL has instructed it to release Mustafizur Rahman from the squad ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) season. The release has been carried out following due process and consultations, upon the instruction of the Board of Control of Cricket in India,” the franchise said.
“BCCI will allow Kolkata Knight Riders a replacement player in line with IPL regulations, and further details will be communicated in due course,” the statement from the three-time IPL champions read.
“Due to the recent developments which is going on all across, BCCI has instructed the franchise KKR to release one of their players Mustafizur Rahman of Bangladesh from their squad and BCCI has also said that if they ask for any replacement, BCCI is going to allow that replacement,” BCCI secretary Devjit Saikia told ANI.
Following this, the BCB forwarded a request to ICC for moving the T20 World Cup 2026 fixtures from India to Sri Lanka citing security concerns. Bangladesh are slated to play three matches in Kolkata and one in Mumbai.
“An emergency meeting of the Board of Directors of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) was held this afternoon to discuss recent developments related to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, scheduled to be hosted by India and Sri Lanka. The Board reviewed the situation in detail, taking into account developments over the last 24 hours and expressed deep concern over the overall circumstances surrounding the participation of the Bangladesh National Team in matches scheduled to be played in India,” the BCB said in a statement.
Later, the ICC had reportedly turned down Bangladesh’s request to relocate their matches. According to a report by ESPNCricinfo, the decision was conveyed to BCB. ICC has told the Bangladesh Cricket Board that “Bangladesh will need to travel to India to play the T20 World Cup or risk forfeiting points.”
