Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Tuesday removed Indian presenter Ridhima Pathak from the ongoing Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) broadcast panel. This year’s BPL had introduced a fresh presentation lineup, with Pakistani presenter Zaynab Abbas joining Ridhima as hosts.
The commentary panel featured former Pakistan captain and PCB chief Ramiz Raja, along with English cricket legend Darren Gough. However, following recent Bangladesh-India political strains, Ridhima’s involvement in the BPL came to an end.
The move came in the wake of Kolkata Knight Riders dropping Mustafizur Rahman from their Indian Premier League (IPL) squad on January 3, following directives from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and threats from extremist Hindu groups.
The decision came amid allegations of communal attacks on Hindu minority in Bangladesh and rising “anti-Bangladeshi” sentiment.
In response, the BCB held an emergency meeting and cited security concerns to inform the ICC that Bangladesh may be unable to travel to India for the upcoming T20 World Cup. The board has also requested that Bangladesh’s World Cup matches be moved to venues outside India.
Subsequently, on January 5, the Bangladesh government issued a ban on domestic broadcasters airing the IPL in the country.
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