Indian presenter Ridhima Pathak has slammed reports that the Bangladesh Cricket Board had dropped her from the presentation panel of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).
Ridhima was scheduled to host the Dhaka edition of this year's BPL, but she was reportedly dropped from the presentation team before arriving in Bangladesh. The current edition of the BPL began in Sylhet.
'Truth matters. In the last few hours, there's been a narrative suggesting I was 'dropped' from the BPL. That is not true. I made a personal decision to opt out. For me, my nation comes first - always. And I value the game of cricket far beyond any single assignment,' Ridhima wrote on her Instagram handle.
'I've been privileged to serve this sport for years with honesty, respect and passion. That won't change. I'll continue to stand for integrity, for clarity, and for the spirit of the game. Thank you everyone who reached out with support. Your messages mean more than you know. Cricket deserves truth. Period. No further comments from my side.' she added.
Bangladesh's local media reported on Wednesday, quoting sources in the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) that Ridhima was axed from the BPL.
The BPL authorities also introduced significant new elements to the presentation and commentary panels this season.
Pakistani presenter Zainab Abbas arrived in Bangladesh, along with renowned commentators Waqar Younis, Ramiz Raja, and Darren Gough. Ridhima was scheduled to join them, but she will no longer attend.
The Bangladesh government, on January 5, decided to suspend the broadcast of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 matches in the country following the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) asking Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to release Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman from their IPL 2026 roster in response to a directive from the BCCI regarding atrocities committed against minorities in Bangladesh.
The IPL gets underway on March 26.
Meanwhile, the International Cricket Council (ICC) rejected the BCB's request to shift their matches from India to Sri Lanka for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2026, according to ESPNcricinfo.
The report said a virtual call on Tuesday took place between the ICC and BCB, during which the ICC informed the Board that it was rejecting the latter's request to shift Bangladesh's matches outside India due to security concerns.
The report further added that the ICC have told the BCB that their senior men's national cricket team will need to travel to India to play their T20 World Cup matches or risk forfeiting points.
It is to be noted that there has been no official statement issued by BCB or ICC on the outcome of Tuesday's call, which was arranged after BCB wrote in on Sunday, asking to consider moving Bangladesh's matches to Sri Lanka in the T20 World Cup 2026, as per ESPNcricinfo.
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