‘He told blatant lies’: Salahuddin blasts Asif Nazrul over T20 World Cup U-turn

Bangladesh national team senior assistant coach Mohammad Salahuddin on Thursday launched a scathing attack on former Youth and Sports Adviser Asif Nazrul, calling him “a blatant liar” over his shifting statements regarding the country’s withdrawal from the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

The controversy dates back to early February, when Nazrul initially stated that Bangladesh’s decision to pull out of the tournament in India was a strict government directive taken on security grounds. However, on 10 February, he revised his position, describing the move as a voluntary “sacrifice” by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) and the players for the sake of national dignity.

The apparent U-turn triggered widespread backlash within cricketing circles, with players privately expressing anger at being portrayed as willing participants in a decision they had no role in shaping. On 12 February, Nazrul issued a clarification, admitting that he had failed to explain the situation clearly during what he termed an “unprepared conversation,” though he maintained that the players deserved appreciation for standing by the nation’s stance.

Salahuddin however, said the damage had already been done.

“He told such blatant lies,” Salahuddin told reporters at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, expressing deep frustration at what he described as contradictory explanations that left players hurt and disillusioned.

“I myself am a teacher; teachers generally lie a bit less. That he would say such lies so openly—I honestly can’t even imagine it. How will I even show my face in front of the boys? He is a teacher at Dhaka University. A person from the highest educational institution of my country telling such lies—we can’t accept this. How can we accept this? He said one thing earlier and later took a U-turn,” he added.

Beyond the political back-and-forth, Salahuddin stressed the human cost of the withdrawal, particularly on players who had dreamed of playing on cricket’s biggest T20 stage.

“When a boy goes to play in a World Cup, he brings his dream—his 27-year-old dream—there,” he said. “You destroy that dream in one second. Fine, if it’s a country’s decision taken for national reasons, they will sacrifice for the country. But if you talk about loss, I will talk only about personal loss.”

The coach revealed that two players were left mentally shattered in the immediate aftermath.

“I know that two of my players went into a kind of coma—mentally—for five days, completely lost. The fact that we were able to bring them back onto the field in this tournament is itself a big thing. I think this is the biggest success of my coaching life—that he came back onto the field and scored runs again,” he said.

“Money is a factor, but it’s a small factor. What really matters is that the World Cup he has dreamed about all his life—he wanted to play that World Cup,” he added.