Bangladesh Board Forced To Reschedule BPL 2026 Amid Players-Led Protests

The Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) 2026 has been thrown into a scheduling disarray following a high-profile player boycott that forced the removal of a senior board official, M Nazmul Islam. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) confirmed a revised fixture list on Thursday after matches were abandoned when players refused to take the field, demanding a public apology from Nazmul along with his resignation.

Under the new arrangements, the Bangladesh board issued a notice, highlighting the revised schedule of the country's top T20 league.

In the release, the BCB said: "The BPL 2026 matches scheduled for 15 January 2026 will now be played on Friday, 16 January 2026. The matches originally scheduled for January 16 and 17 will be shifted by a day and will be held on 17 and 18 January respectively. The Eliminator and Qualifier 1, scheduled to be held on 19 January, have been shifted to January 20."

The crisis was ignited by shock remarks made by Nazmul Islam, the BCB's Finance Committee Chairman and a Board Director. Islam sparked outrage across the cricketing community after calling Tamim Iqbal, the country's former captain, an 'Indian agent' over his comments urging on the importance of dialogue with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) over the T20 World Cup 2026 venue row.

Led by the Cricketers Welfare Association of Bangladesh (CWAB), senior internationals, including Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mehidy Hasan Miraz, launched an immediate boycott. The impact was felt instantly at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Thursday, as teams for the scheduled afternoon and evening fixtures failed to arrive for the toss.

Facing a total collapse of its flagship T20 tournament, the BCB held an emergency meeting and announced that Islam had been "released from his responsibilities" as Chairman of the Finance Committee.

"The decision is aimed at ensuring the continued smooth and effective functioning of the board's affairs," the BCB stated. "The board remains fully committed to upholding the honour and dignity of all players under its jurisdiction."

While the revised schedule for the BPL matches has been announced, the players still aren't satisfied over the board's action. The demand from the players remains the same, a public apology from Islam as well as his complete exit from the Bangladesh Cricket Board.

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