New Delhi: A day after the International Cricket Council (ICC) publicly denied Bangladesh’s request to move its fixtures in the upcoming men’s T20 World Cup from India to Sri Lanka on ‘security’ grounds, and amid persisting tension in Indo-Bangladeshi relations, the cricket administration in Dhaka has refused to relent.With the World Cup set to begin in just over two weeks and the ICC reportedly issuing an ultimatum to the Bangladeshis, the team’s participation in the tournament has grown even more uncertain.Speaking to the media on Thursday (January 22), Bangladesh’s sports adviser Asif Nazrul and Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Aminul Islam said they would continue to insist to the ICC that their matches be moved to tournament co-host Sri Lanka.Bangladeshi officials’ argument that their players would face a security threat in India ‘is not just a theory’, as was seen when the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had Bangladeshi bowler Mustafizur Rahman released from the Kolkata Knight Riders earlier this month in response to pressure, adviser Nazrul, who spoke in Bengali, was cited as saying by ESPN Cricinfo.“How can we be convinced that they [Indian authorities] can provide security to our cricketers, fans and journalists?” Nazrul asked.He went on to accuse both the ICC and the Indian government of ‘not even trying to convince us’. The council “only talked about their standard security plan rather than address our specific grievance” while the Indians “didn’t call the Mustafiz incident an isolated incident”, “didn’t say sorry about the Mustafiz incident or even try to communicate with us,” Cricinfo quoted Nazrul as saying.“So there’s no scope for changing our decision … We are hopeful the ICC will take into account our genuine concern, and give us the opportunity to play in the World Cup.”Rahman was released by the Knight Riders on the BCCI’s instructions earlier this month amid calls by some in the Hindu right to do so in light of incidents of violence against members of the Hindu community in Bangladesh. The Indian Board’s secretary Devajit Saikia vaguely attributed the decision to “recent developments” that were taking place “all across”.In protest, Nazrul said he had asked the BCB to write to the ICC requesting that Bangladesh’s matches be moved to Sri Lanka because if one “Bangladeshi cricketer cannot play in India despite being contracted, the entire Bangladeshi cricket team cannot feel safe going to play in the World Cup”.Dhaka also banned broadcasts of the Indian Premier League in response.BCB president Islam on Thursday accused the ICC of denying to Bangladesh the ‘privilege’ it had granted to India.“The ICC tried to tell us about incidents in 1996 and 2003 but we pointed out their recent steps in a similar matter … When a country refused to travel to another country for the Champions’ Trophy last February, the ICC organised a neutral venue for them … They played in one ground, staying in one hotel. It was a privilege,” Islam said per Cricinfo, referring to India playing all its matches in the Pakistan-based tournament in Dubai.He also said that Bangladesh would continue pressing its case despite the ICC’s reported one-day deadline to the Board to get Dhaka to change its mind. “A global organisation cannot give a deadline of 24 hours. We will keep fighting,” the cricketing news portal quoted him as saying.“When cricket’s popularity is in decline, the ICC is denying a cricket-loving country of 200 million people. Cricket is going to the Olympics in 2028. India is bidding for the Olympics and Commonwealth Games, but it will be their failure if such a country [Bangladesh] is not going to the World Cup. We are not giving up on playing the World Cup,” he also said.Cricinfo reported that despite Dhaka and the BCB doubling down, “the prevailing sentiment among [Bangladeshi] players was that they wanted to play the World Cup”.In a statement on Wednesday the ICC said it would not accommodate Bangladesh’s request because security assessments did not indicate a threat to Bangladeshi players, fans, officials or journalists.“Over the past several weeks, the ICC has engaged with the BCB in sustained and constructive dialogue,” during which it shared security assessments and plans as well as assurances from hosting authorities, “all of which consistently concluded” that there was no threat, an ICC spokesperson said on Wednesday.But “despite these efforts, the BCB maintained its position, repeatedly linking its participation in the tournament to a single, isolated and unrelated development concerning one of its player’s involvement in a domestic league”, the ICC said, arguing that a change of venue in these circumstances “would jeopardise the sanctity of future ICC events and undermine its neutrality as a global governing body”.The council had also decided in a board meeting on Wednesday that it would replace Bangladesh with Scotland in the upcoming tournament were the BCB to stick to its line, according to a Cricinfo report.The standoff between the BCB and the ICC – which is chaired by Jay Shah, son of Union home minister Amit Shah – comes at a time of tense relations between New Delhi and the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government in Dhaka, which have also been reflected on the streets in recent weeks.