New Delhi: Bangladesh’s interim government under new leader Muhammad Yunus is planning to approach the United Nations in an attempt to keep the hosting rights for the upcoming Women’s T20 World Cu
New Delhi: Bangladesh’s interim government under new leader Muhammad Yunus is planning to approach the United Nations in an attempt to keep the hosting rights for the upcoming Women’s T20 World Cup amid the ongoing political crisis in the country. Bangladesh has been going through a political unrest recently that saw former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina flee to India and resign.
In the wake of the current situation of Bangladesh, several countries like England, Scotland, Australia, India and New Zealand have reportedly asked their citizens to not travel to the country. The women’s T20 World Cup 2024 is slated for October 3 to 20 with the matches happening in Dhaka and Sylhet.
With the travel restrictions in place from the above-mentioned countries, there has been a big question mark on the hosting of the tournament. Asif Mahmud, Youth and Sports Adviser of Bangladesh’s interim government, revealed that they are planning to speak to UN to resolve the issue.
“There are travel restrictions for some countries and so we will speak with the United Nations. There are some issues regarding security and infrastructure and we will talk in this regard with professor Yunus (chief adviser to Bangladesh’s interim government). He is a sports lover and hope that he can resolve the matter,” Asif told ESPNcricinfo.
Earlier, the International Cricket Council (ICC) had also said that they are monitoring the situation in Bangladesh before the women’s T20 World Cup 2024. “The ICC has an independent security monitoring system across all its member nations.
“The situation is being monitored closely but with seven weeks left for the tournament to begin, it will be too early to comment whether the tournament will be shifted from Bangladesh,” an ICC board member had said to PTI on conditions of anonymity.
To add more to it, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan is also missing since PM Hasina has left the country. Notably, Nazmul holds a top post in the Awami League, the ruling party that formed the government during PM Hasina’s tenure.
“The BCB president is missing. Of course, for a federation to function, all of its organs need to work. The president holds an important responsibility and he is absent. The BCB is an autonomous federation and we cannot give them any decision,” Asif said.
Asif also stated that they have asked the BCB to speak with the ICC and find ways on how to resolve the issue. “They will report to us later on whether to appoint someone for an interim period. We will continue the process in this regard. We want to make required changes but at the same time we need to follow a process. We don’t want to change the person; rather, we want to change the system so that whoever comes in by following that system, corruption cannot come in and we want to take steps so that we can make a permanent solution,” he added.
