Former Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful has shared that pacer Mustafizur Rahman remains unfazed by the recent developments regarding his release from the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The fast bowler was released from KKR’s squad following a directive from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) due to the tense situation between the two nations.
As the assistant coach of Rangpur Riders in the ongoing Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), Ashraful mentioned that Mustafizur isn’t bothered by the IPL’s decision and is currently focused on his BPL duties with the Riders.
“He (Mustafizur) is completely chill. He is not worried at all about all the off-field talk – whether it’s BCB, India, BPL or ICC,” Ashraful told reporters following the Riders’ match against Chattogram Royals. He also added, “Right now he is focused on playing for Rangpur Riders, and after this, whatever assignment comes next, he will focus on that. He is a person of a different level. If you talk about Mustafizur in the first two matches, his performances were a bit below par, but especially the way we won the last match against Dhaka was an outstanding victory. And the way Mustafizur bowled those last two overs – I think he is a world champion for this format, that’s how important he is.”
In response to BCCI’s decision, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) convened an emergency board meeting and formally requested the International Cricket Council (ICC) to relocate all their matches in the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup to venues outside India, citing safety and security concerns.
India and Sri Lanka are scheduled to co-host the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup from February 7 to March 8, with matches taking place at multiple venues in both countries.
Bangladesh’s refusal to play in India poses a risk to the tournament schedule, as their itinerary includes matches against the West Indies on February 7, Italy on February 9, and England on February 14 at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens, along with a match against Nepal on February 17 at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.