Aminul Haque used his first day as Bangladesh’s sports minister to signal a reset with Indian cricket authorities, stressing that he hopes to “resolve this issue quickly” following Bangladesh’s withdrawal from the ongoing men’s T20 World Cup.
Fresh from Tuesday’s swearing-in ceremony, Haque met India’s deputy high commissioner in the parliamentary complex. “It was a cordial conversation. I told him that we want to resolve this issue quickly through discussions because we want to maintain friendly relations with all our neighbouring countries,” he explained.
The row dates back to April, when the Indian government instructed Kolkata Knight Riders to drop Mustafizur Rahman, the lone Bangladeshi in IPL 2026. Dhaka then declined to play its World Cup fixtures in India, requesting a Sri Lankan base instead. The ICC replaced Bangladesh with Scotland, though last week the global body confirmed there would be no financial sanction and, in a conciliatory move, awarded Bangladesh hosting rights for an additional ICC event before the 2031 ODI World Cup.
“From sports to all other sectors, we want to build a sincere and cordial relationship [with India],” Haque said. “You know that because of diplomatic complications, we could not play in the World Cup. If those issues had been discussed and settled earlier, our team might have participated.”
Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) officials welcomed Haque’s comments. One senior administrator described them as “a sensible first step,” noting that India remain Bangladesh’s most lucrative touring partner. Cricket analyst Farid Khan added that a thaw is vital. “Missing the World Cup hurt the players and the board financially. Repairing ties with the BCCI has to be priority one.”
India are due in Bangladesh in September for three ODIs and three T20Is, a trip still officially on the Future Tours Programme. Scheduling meetings between the two boards are expected shortly. Insiders suggest that agreeing neutral-venue safeguards for any future multi-nation events could unlock the stalemate.
For now, the new minister’s message is clear: dialogue over deadlock. Whether it arrives in time for Virat Kohli’s next visit to Dhaka remains to be seen, but the early signs point to a more pragmatic chapter in the sometimes-fraught cricketing relationship between the neighbours.
