The R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo may be hosting a one-day international series at the moment, but the real show begins in less than two weeks. The venue has been dressed with branding for the upcoming men’s T20 World Cup, co-hosted by Sri Lanka and India: a banner hangs out the front, an image of the trophy accompanied by a simple tagline: “Feel the thrill”.
This, of course, is how it should be as you approach a global tournament, a real buzz as the world is welcomed on to an island. Spotted in the stadium during Sri Lanka’s second ODI against England on Saturday was a poster reading: “We will repeat 2014”, a nod to their tournament victory 12 years ago, a crowning moment for the departing Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene. With Italy among the 20 teams competing, the upcoming showpiece looks like a genuinely global event unlike the more exclusive 50-over version.
Of course, the reality is far from joyous. The weekend brought confirmation of a change to the final lineup, with the International Cricket Council announcing the absence of Bangladesh after the country’s cricket board ruled out travelling to India. Scotland will feature instead, late beneficiaries as the swirling force of subcontinental politics meets a governing body lacking in credibility.
The episode began when the Bangladesh quick Mustafizur Rahman was discarded by Kolkata Knight Riders at the start of the month, the Indian Premier League franchise having been told to do so by the Board of Control for Cricket in India. Devajit Saikia, the board secretary, stated vaguely that it was “due to recent developments”.
Tensions between the two nations had already escalated. The removal of Rahman came weeks after the killing of Dipu Chandra Das – a Hindu factory worker accused of blasphemy – by a mob in northern Bangladesh. Protests followed across the border, where Sheikh Hasina – the ousted Bangladesh prime minister – resides in exile. Shah Rukh Khan, the Bollywood megastar and KKR owner, was met with attacks by religious and political figures in India for his franchise’s signing.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board’s response was swift after Rahman’s removal. Citing advice from the Bangladesh government, it highlighted “concerns regarding the safety and security of the Bangladesh contingent in India” and refused to play in the country.
The ICC’s statement on why it did not oblige is lengthy. It considered “all security assessments conducted … all of which indicated there was no threat to Bangladesh players, media persons, officials and fans at any of the tournament venues in India”. There was plenty of dialogue with the BCB, it explained, and it was “not feasible to make changes so close to the tournament”. It claimed that to do so “could set a precedent that would jeopardise the sanctity of future ICC events and undermine its neutrality as a global governing body”.
Naturally, you wonder why such detail was not provided when India did not travel to Pakistan for the Champions Trophy last year. The governing body’s press release to close that saga was brief, simply stating that Pakistan and India would not visit one another in ICC events during the current rights cycle. No explanation was offered as to why this had come about, how it had been decided, what exact concerns India had with touring Pakistan, who had visited their neighbouring country at the 2023 World Cup.
The “sanctity of future ICC events” is a particularly tragicomic line. The Champions Trophy decision did “set a precedent”, forming a hybrid model that has already turned ICC tournaments into a joke. India set up shop in Dubai for the duration of their Champions Trophy triumph last year while other sides flew in and out of two countries, the brilliance of Rohit Sharma’s side overshadowed by the lopsidedness of the whole thing. With the Women’s World Cup hosted in India last year, Pakistan’s matches were shifted to wet-season Colombo, where five matches were washouts.
“Neutrality” is another curious term within the statement. It is always worth a reminder that the current ICC chair is Jay Shah, previously the honorary secretary of the BCCI and son of Amit Shah, India’s home minister and longtime confidant of Narendra Modi.
Pakistan’s matches in the upcoming World Cup will all be played in Sri Lanka, adding to the farce. Yet Mohsin Naqvi, chair of the Pakistan Cricket Board and the country’s interior minister, has cast doubt over the side’s participation following Bangladesh’s removal, claiming that the final call lies with the government.
The spirit of 1996 has long disappeared. Sri Lanka, in the midst of civil war, were World Cup co-hosts back then, too. While Australia and West Indies forfeited their fixtures in Colombo after the bombing of a bank in the city weeks before the start, to prove the island was safe, a combined India-Pakistan XI took to the field against Sri Lanka at the Premadasa Stadium on the eve of the tournament. Wasim Akram and Sachin Tendulkar were among the names involved in a show of solidarity, South Asians united. It’s a historical event that does not get spoken about enough.
The American writer Mike Marqusee was there that day, witnessing Akram and Tendulkar embrace after they combined to dismiss Romesh Kaluwitharana. “It was hard to believe that not twenty-four hours earlier Indian and Pakistani troops were exchanging fire across the disputed Kashmir border,” he wrote in War Minus The Shooting. “Not for the only time that day, I felt a lump in my throat.” That memory is worth clinging to.
