Bangladesh announce squad for ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026

MIRPUR: The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Sunday announced a 15-member squad for the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026, scheduled to be played in England and Wales from June 12 to July 5.

Experienced wicketkeeper batter Nigar Sultana will lead Bangladesh in the mega event for the third consecutive time, having previously served as the captain in the 2023 and 2024 editions.

Bangladesh brought back top-order batter Taj Nehar in place of Sarmin Sultana, who was part of their squad for the three-match home series against Sri Lanka.

Nehar, who made her debut in 2024 against Scotland, made her last appearance for Bangladesh in the only format she has played thus far in January 2025. In her eight T20Is, the right-handed batter has managed to accumulate 44 runs at a dismal average of 6.28.

Despite her underwhelming numbers, Bangladesh's chief selector Sajjad Ahmed backed her for solving the problem of scoring quick runs at the backend, while hinting at plans for utilising Sarmin in ODIs.

"We were thinking of Sarmin Sultana for the one-day format. Taj Nehar is a versatile cricketer who can bat between No. 1 to No. 6 in the batting line-up," Ahmed said.

"The selectors believe that Nehar can solve the problem of scoring quick runs in the last five overs," he added.

Bangladesh, placed in Group 1, will start their campaign against Netherlands on June 14 before taking on Australia on June 17, while their remaining two league-stage fixtures are scheduled against Pakistan and India on June 20 and 25, respectively.

Bangladesh squad for women's T20 World Cup 2026

Nigar Sultana (c), Nahida Akter (vc), Sharmin Akter, Sobhana Mostary, Shorna Akter, Ritu Moni, Rabeya Khan, Fahima Khatun, Fariha Islam, Marufa Akter, Shanjida Akter, Sultana Khatun, Dilara Akter (wk), Juairiya Ferdous and Taj Nehar.