Team India reportedly may not tour Bangladesh for white-ball series in August due to cross-border tensions with Pakistan

Amid India-Pakistan tensions after the Pahalgam attack, the BCCI might cancel India's August white-ball tour to Bangladesh.

Team India reportedly may not tour Bangladesh for white-ball series in August due to cross-border tensions with Pakistan

Reports have emerged that the BCCI is considering cancelling India's upcoming tour to Bangladesh, amid political tensions. (via ESPN Cricinfo)

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is reportedly considering cancelling India’s upcoming white-ball tour to Bangladesh, scheduled in August. It comes amid geo-political tension between India and Pakistan, following the brutal Pahalgam terrorist attack that claimed 26 Indian lives. 

The Indian Men’s cricket team is expected to travel to neighboring Bangladesh, for a multi-format white-ball series between the two sides. They are supposed to play three ODIs and three T20Is against their arch-rivals, starting 17 August, 2025. The tour is set to convene after India’s much-awaited five-match Test series against England. It is expected to be India’s first tour to Bangladesh, since December 2022.

However, following the Pahalgam terror attacks, increased political tensions between India and Pakistan might lead to the cancellation of the scheduled tour of Bangladesh. The terrorist attack that took place on 22nd April, 2025, at Baisaran Valley in Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian government has blamed Pakistan as the mastermind behind the attack, after a terrorist outfit from the nation claimed responsibility. 

Reports had emerged that the BCCI had written to the ICC, urging them to not pair India and Pakistan, in upcoming ICC events. There have been calls for a complete boycott of Pakistan in the cricketing world, with Bangladesh, perceived close to them, also getting affected. A source, close to the BCCI, recently notified that the board is considering cancelling the upcoming tour to the neighboring country.

The tour is part of the calendar but nothing is final yet. There is a bright possibility of India not touring Bangladesh for the ODIs and T20Is because of the current situation.

BCCI source on the Bangladesh tour (via Times of India)

It fueled after a retired Bangladesh army official made offensive remarks about the North-eastern part of India, on social media. Maj Gen ALM Fazlur Rahman spoke about occupying the seven states of the north-east, in case India attacks Pakistan in retaliation of the Pahalgam attack. However, any concrete decision is yet to be taken, with the Bangladesh tour being a part of the international cricketing calendar.

The heightened diplomatic and political tensions in the Indian subcontinent could also result in the upcoming 2025 Asia Cup T20, being postponed. The tournament, set to take place in September, was to be hosted by India. However, as both India and Pakistan have refused to travel to each other’s homelands in order to play cricket, the 2025 Asia Cup could be shifted to a neutral venue, either UAE or Sri Lanka.

Coming back to India’s 2025 tour to Bangladesh, the BCCI is yet to make an official announcement regarding it. The last encounter between the two sides was in the 2025 Champions Trophy group stage. In that match, India, who eventually won the tournament, defeated Bangladesh by six wickets at the Dubai International Stadium.

India under-19 team set to tour England this year, ahead of the upcoming 2026 ICC u-19 World Cup 

The India men’s senior team would be accompanied by the under-19 side, during their tour to England, later this year. The BCCI most recently announced a full-fledged tour for the India u-19 side to England, this summer, which is set to include five One-Days and two unofficial Test matches. 

India under-19 England tour
The Indian under-19 team is set to travel to England later this year. (NDTV Sports)

The India u-19 side, led by skipper Mohammad Amaan, will face off against the England u-19 side, beginning in June 2025. The tour is expected to feature the likes of 17-year-old Ayush Mhatre, who plays for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, and 14-year-old batting sensation, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who scored a 35-ball century in an IPL encounter for Rajasthan Royals, against Gujarat Titans.

The India u-19 team was last in action in December 2024, in the Asia Cup, where they lost the final to Bangladesh. Moreover, the upcoming England tour for the India u-19 side would be preparation for the ICC under-19 World Cup in January 2026, set to be hosted by Zimbabwe and Namibia.