T20 World Cup 2026: ICC to review media accreditation requests by Bangladeshi journalists

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has begun reworking its media accreditation system for Bangladeshi journalists who want to cover the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup in India, after their team’s removal following the withdrawal of Bangladesh’s national team from the tournament due to security concerns. 

With Bangladesh no longer participating, the number of accreditation applications and scheduling dynamics has changed suddenly, prompting the ICC to adjust the process. If the reports are to be believed, the ICC was all set to reject the requests of some of the 80-90 Bangladeshi journalists who had applied for the event, even if Bangladesh had played the twenty-team tournament.

"There is a reworking of the process since there is a change in the number of requests and the schedules. The accreditation lists are being worked out accordingly. If you go by country quota, you can't exceed the number beyond 40. The ICC goes by the recommendations of the home board and accordingly takes a call on applications," said an ICC source as quoted by NDTV.

BCB requests ICC for an explanation

In Dhaka, BCB media committee chairman Amjad Hossain confirmed the board has raised the matter with the ICC, and they have asked for the explanation from the ICC.

“The decision came only yesterday and we have sought to know the details. An explanation has been requested. This is an internal and confidential matter, but to summarize, we wanted to know why this was done,” Hossain told.

Several Bangladeshi journalists have said their accreditation requests were rejected, with some citing past experience covering multiple ICC events and expressing surprise at this year’s outcome.

“I have covered 8 to 9 ICC World Cups. This was the first time my application was rejected. We are awaiting clarity from BCB before reapplying,” a senior journalist said.

The ICC’s revision comes amid the controversies revolving around Bangladesh’s decision regarding the marquee event. Notably, Scotland replaced the Bangla Tigers for the global tournament and have also named their squad for the cricketing spectacle, set to begin on February 7.