Bangladeshs Athar Ali Khan to feature in T20 World Cup commentary panel

Although the Bangladesh team will not be on the field, the red and green will not be entirely absent from the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup. Representing the country off the field, former cricketer and seasoned commentator Athar Ali Khan has secured a place in the ICC’s star-studded commentary panel.

Bangladesh are not participating in this year’s T20 World Cup after deciding against touring India due to security concerns. Earlier, it had already been confirmed that Sharfuddoula Ibne Shahid Saikat from the Elite Umpires Panel and Gazi Sohel from the International Panel would be involved in the World Cup as match officials. Now, Athar Ali Khan joins them as the third Bangladeshi representative at the tournament. On Friday, the ICC officially announced the names of 40 commentators selected for television and digital broadcasts.

At 63, Athar Ali Khan brings more than two decades of experience in international cricket commentary. However, this World Cup presents a different scenario for him, as Bangladesh will not be competing in the tournament, which begins jointly in India and Sri Lanka. Following the ICC’s decision, Scotland have been included in the competition in place of Bangladesh.

In the commentary box, Athar will be alongside legendary voices such as Ravi Shastri, Nasser Hussain, Ian Smith, Ian Bishop, Sunil Gavaskar and Harsha Bhogle. Along with these familiar names, the panel also features some notable first-timers. Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews and South Africa’s Temba Bavuma are set to make their debut as commentators in an ICC event.

The ICC stated that the commentators will cover all 55 matches of the tournament. Through the organisation’s own digital platform, ‘ICC TV’, viewers will get pre-match, in-match and post-match analysis, along with daily highlights programmes.

Commentators for the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup include:
Ravi Shastri, Nasser Hussain, Ian Smith, Ian Bishop, Aaron Finch, Dinesh Karthik, Kumar Sangakkara, Samuel Badree, Robin Uthappa, Carlos Brathwaite, Eoin Morgan, Wasim Akram, Sunil Gavaskar, Matthew Hayden, Ramiz Raja, Dale Steyn, Michael Atherton, Waqar Younis, Simon Doull, Shaun Pollock, Katie Martin, Harsha Bhogle, Mpumelelo Mbangwa, Natalie Germanos, Danny Morrison, Alan Wilkins, Ian Ward, Mark Howard, Nick Knight, Athar Ali Khan, Cass Naidu, Bazid Khan, Raunak Kapoor, Niall O’Brien, Preston Mommsen, Andrew Leonard, Russell Arnold, Roshan Abeysinghe, Angelo Mathews and Temba Bavuma.