Bangladesh 'removes' Indian presenter from BPL line-up

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has removed Indian presenter Ridhima Pathak from this year’s Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).

The decision follows Bangladesh’s move to suspend broadcasts of the Indian Premier League (IPL) within the country during the T20 World Cup period.

According to Indian news agency ANI, Ridhima Pathak was scheduled to take part in the BPL this year as a host, but was dropped from the presentation team before travelling to Bangladesh.

She has been replaced by Pakistan’s Zainab Abbas, who has already arrived in the country.

The commentary panel for the tournament includes Pakistani commentators Waqar Younis and Ramiz Raja, along with former England fast bowler Darren Gough.

On 5 January, the Bangladesh government suspended broadcasts of IPL 2026 matches. The decision came after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) reportedly instructed Kolkata Knight Riders to drop Bangladesh fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman from their squad.

Following this, Bangladesh wrote to the ICC requesting that its T20 World Cup matches be moved away from India, and subsequently imposed a ban on the telecast of the IPL.