Former cricket stars Afridi, Gillespie slam ICC for replacing Bangladesh with Scotland

Former cricketing heavyweights Shahid Afridi and Jason Gillespie have launched a scathing attack on the International Cricket Council (ICC), accusing the governing body of 'hypocrisy' and 'double standards' after it officially replaced Bangladesh with Scotland in the 2026 T20 World Cup.

The backlash follows the ICC's confirmation on Saturday that Scotland would take Bangladesh's spot in Group C, after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) refused to send its team to India citing security concerns.

The ICC justified the move by stating there was an 'absence of any credible or verifiable security threat'.

Former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi expressed deep disappointment on social media platform X, pointing out the glaring inconsistency in how the ICC handles security claims from different nations.

He drew a sharp parallel to India's refusal to tour Pakistan for the 2025 Champions Trophy, a decision the ICC accommodated.

"It accepted India's security concerns for not touring Pakistan in 2025, yet appears unwilling to apply the same understanding to Bangladesh," Afridi wrote. "Consistency and fairness are the foundation of global cricket governance... The ICC should build bridges, not burn them." 

Australian legend and former Pakistan red-ball coach Jason Gillespie echoed these sentiments, openly questioning why a neutral venue solution—often used for India—was not offered to Bangladesh. 

"Has there been an explanation from the ICC why Bangladesh could not play their games outside of India?" Gillespie asked on X. "From memory, India refused to play Champions Trophy matches in Pakistan and they were allowed to play those games outside of Pakistan. Can someone make this make sense?!?!"

Scotland, beneficiaries of the standoff, will now join England, the West Indies, Italy, and Nepal in Group C.