The International Cricket Council on Tuesday (August 20) confirmed its decision to shift the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 out of Bangladesh.

While Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) still has the hosting rights, the showpiece tournament will now be played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The competition will take place across the two venues in the UAE – Dubai and Sharjah – from 3 to 20 October.

ICC took this call amid the political turmoil in Bangladesh. Earlier this month, Bangladesh underwent regime change after protests led to PM Sheikh Hasina fleeing from country.

“It is a shame not to be hosting the Women’s T20 World Cup in Bangladesh as we know the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) would have staged a memorable event,” ICC Chief Executive Geoff Allardice said in a statement.

“I would like to thank the team at the BCB for exploring all avenues to try and enable the event to be hosted in Bangladesh, but travel advisories from the governments of a number of the participating teams meant that wasn’t feasible. However, they will retain hosting rights. We look forward to taking an ICC global event to Bangladesh in the near future.

“I’d also like to thank the Emirates Cricket Board for stepping in to host on behalf of the BCB and Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe for their generous offers of support, and we look forward to seeing ICC global events in both of those countries in 2026.”

The UAE, home to the ICC headquarters, has become a significant hub for cricket in recent years, hosting numerous qualifier tournaments as well as the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2021 alongside Oman.

Considering its top-notch facilities and infrastructure, the UAE is well-equipped to stage the Women’s T20 World Cup.

The country's growing prominence in the sport is reflected in the rise of both its men’s and women’s teams, each currently ranked 16th in the ICC T20I Team Rankings.

(With ICC Inputs)