Pakistan is expected to reassess its participation in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 in India-Sri Lanka, following increasing concerns related to the Bangladesh cricket team.

The Bangladesh government has reached out to Pakistan for support over its decision to skip travelling to India for the tournament, citing security concerns, sources said.

They added that Pakistan supports Bangladesh’s legitimate concerns, emphasising that they should be addressed and acted upon.

Pakistan has also stressed that no country should face pressure or threats from India, assuring Bangladesh of its full support on the matter.

On January 11, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) expressed its willingness to host Bangladesh’s matches in the T20 World Cup after the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) decided against travelling to India over security concerns.

PCB sources confirmed that Pakistan formally communicated its interest in hosting Bangladesh’s fixtures should venues in Sri Lanka be unavailable.

They added that all Pakistani venues are fully prepared to stage World Cup matches and highlighted Pakistan’s successful hosting of major ICC events, including the Champions Trophy 2025, and the ICC Women’s Qualifier.

Meanwhile, in another development, Cricket Ireland (CI) clarified that the International Cricket Council (ICC) will not move Ireland’s group-stage matches out of Sri Lanka, dismissing reports of a possible group swap with Bangladesh.

This follows claims that the BCB had requested a group exchange due to concerns over travelling to India.

“We’ve received definitive assurances that we won’t move from the original schedule. We’re definitely playing the group stage in Sri Lanka,” a Cricket Ireland official confirmed.

Under the current schedule, Bangladesh are in Group B with West Indies, England, Nepal, and Italy, playing their matches in Kolkata and Mumbai. Ireland is in Group C alongside co-hosts Sri Lanka, Australia, Zimbabwe, and Oman, with all fixtures in Sri Lanka.

The BCB reportedly discussed the possibility of a group swap with ICC officials in Dhaka on Saturday to minimise logistical challenges, though the proposal received little support from the ICC or Cricket Ireland.

According to the current schedule, Bangladesh will play their first three group matches in Kolkata — against West Indies on February 7, Italy on February 9, and England on February 14 — before concluding against Nepal in Mumbai on February 17.

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 is scheduled to take place in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.

Liverpool are looking to bolster their defensive options by signing Inter Milan‘s Alessandro Bastoni, while Juventus defender Pierre Kalulu is in the sights of Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur. Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.

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TRENDING RUMORS

– Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni has emerged as a top target for Liverpool after the club missed out on signing Manchester City-bound Marc Guéhi, TEAMtalk reports. The 26-year-old Italy international, who has two-and-a-half years of his contract, is reportedly very keen on the idea of testing himself abroad. Another name high on Liverpool’s centre-back shortlist is Borussia Dortmund‘s Nico Schlotterbeck, who is widely expected to be on the move after this summer’s FIFA World Cup.

– Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa are all eyeing a deal for Juventus defender Pierre Kalulu, according to Calciomercato. The France international made a permanent move to Juve last summer, having enjoyed a successful loan spell at the club from Serie A rivals AC Milan the previous season. Calciomercato reports that the 25-year-old could be signed for a fee of €30 million, although he unlikely to move until the end of the season.

– Chelsea are prepared to pay €50m for 20-year-old defender Jérémy Jacquet, according to RMC Sport. The Rennes youngster has been linked with several clubs this month, although Chelsea’s interest has emerged as the most concrete. It’s believed that his club would seek a transfer fee in excess of €60m, as he is under contract until 2029 with no release clause. Jacquet, who is a France under-21 international, has been a regular in Ligue 1 this season, featuring in all but two of Rennes’s games in the competition to date.

– Republic of Ireland striker Evan Ferguson is on Napoli‘s winter shortlist, Corriere dello Sport reports. The 21-year-old, who is on loan at AS Roma from Brighton & Hove Albion this season, may be on the move again, with Napoli looking to sign a new forward this month. Ferguson has five goal involvements in 16 league games this season. Meanwhile, Nicolo Schira reports that Chelsea have offered Napoli the chance to sign Raheem Sterling, who is not in the club’s plans having been frozen out all season.

– The Tottenham Hotspur board are debating whether to give manager Thomas Frank one more game to try and save his job, according to The Independent. Saturday’s 2-1 home defeat to West Ham United sparked chants of “you’re getting sacked in the morning” from Spurs fans, However, the team still have a chance of finishing in the top eight of the Champions League league phase with two games remaining, starting with Tuesday’s visit of Borussia Dortmund, leaving little time between games to make a change in the dugout.

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OTHER RUMORS

– Manchester United are keen on signing Portugal midfielder Rúben Neves, is out of contract at Al Hilal at the end of the season, in the final weeks of the winter window. (Football Insider)

– Chelsea are set to recall Celtic target David Datro Fofana from his loan spell with Turkish club Fatih Karagumruk, as they look to move on the Ivory Coast striker permanently this month. (Football Insider)

– Newcastle United have registered their interest in veteran Inter Milan defender Stefan de Vrij. (Football Insider)

– Girona and Valencia are showing an interest in signing Brighton & Hove Albion defender Diego Coppola on loan. (Matteo Moretto)

– There is a full agreement in place for Beşiktaş to sign Wolverhampton Wanderers defender Emmanuel Agbadou. The transfer fee is expected to be around the €11.5m mark. (Footmercato)

– Schalke 04 are exploring a winter move for Fiorentina striker Edin Dzeko. Concrete talks are underway, as the former Manchester City striker is ready to leave Italy. (Sky Germany)

– Mainz, FC Köln and FC Augsburg are all pushing to sign Como defender Stefan Posch. (Sky Germany)

– Hoffenheim are in advanced talks to sign Irish wonderkid Michael Noonan from Shamrock Rovers. (Fabrizio Romano)

– Rennes are in advanced negotiations with Fenerbahçe over the signing of Polish winger Sebastian Szymanski. (Footmercato)

– Bournemouth are closing in on the loan signing of Lazio goalkeeper Christos Mandas until the end of the season. (Sky Sports)

– St. Louis City are finalizing a move for Barcelona centre-back Mamadou Mbacke Fall. (Tom Bogert)

Lisandro Martínez has challenged Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt to repeat their criticism to his face after the pair said Erling Haaland would make the Manchester United defender look like “a little toddler” in the Manchester derby.

Speaking on a podcast ahead of the game, Butt predicted Haaland would “pick Martinez up and run with him” and their battle at Old Trafford would be rememble “a dad after school running down the road with a little toddler.”

Scholes followed up with “he’d score, then throw him in the net.”

But after Martinez kept Haaland quiet during United’s impressive 2-0 win, the Argentinian hit back at the former players — and Scholes, in particular.

“Honestly, he can say whatever he wants,” Martinez said. “I told him already, if he wants to say something to me, he can come to wherever he wants. To my house, wherever. I don’t care.”

United are known to be unhappy at the comments from Scholes and Butt, believing it was an attempt to mock Martinez rather than offer any constructive analysis.

Both Scholes and Butt have been at Old Trafford recently with the pair spotted in the directors’ boss alongside Sir Alex Ferguson for United’s 2-1 defeat to Brighton in the FA Cup the weekend before the derby — a game Martinez played in.

“I think for me, I respect the relations [ex-players] when they want to help the club because everyone can talk on the television but when you see [them] here face to face, no one says anything in your face,” Martinez continued.

“So for me, I don’t really care what they say. I just put the focus on my performance, the performance of the team and I give everything to this club until my last day.”

Martinez’s display against Haaland — who was substituted early by Pep Guardiola — was key for United as Michael Carrick masterminded victory over City in his first game as head coach.

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The 44-year-old was only appointed on Tuesday and took training for the first time on Wednesday, Still, Martinez said the former United midfielder was able to quickly make an impression on the squad.

“It’s so different, so different,” he said. “Different mentality, different guy. He [Carrick] knows what this club really means. He sent us that message that he played here for a long, long time.

“He won everything. He is a big legend. He wants to help the club and I think we were in a tough situation and it was the best moment to change that.”