Sympathise with Bangladesh but we fully deserve to be at T20 World Cup: Scotland’s Watt

Scotland spinner Mark Watt on Friday expressed sympathy for the Bangladesh players after they missed out on the T20 World Cup owing to their government’s stance, but said Scotland, whIich replaced them at the last minute, fully deserved its place in the global competition.

Watt added that the Scottish side had the ability to spring a few upset wins during the tournament.

Scotland will take on the West Indies in a Group C match at the Eden Gardens on Saturday, hoping to begin its campaign on a winning note after missing out on qualification and being drafted in following the ICC’s decision to replace Bangladesh in the tournament.

“We’re very sympathetic towards the Bangladesh players. But we still massively believe that we should be here and we believe that we can be beating teams higher ranked than us. So there’s no second guessing our invite into this tournament. We’re all ready to go,” said the left-arm spinner, a veteran of 77 T20Is.

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Bangladesh was ousted after refusing to travel to India citing security concerns. It held India responsible for the turmoil, which escalated after Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) pacer Mustafizur Rahman was released from his Indian Premier League (IPL) contract following instructions from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

Watt said the turn of events had forced the team into last-minute preparations, but added that the players were now really excited to be part of the competition and eager to make their mark.

“We got a lot of youngsters in the team at the moment and how more excited can they be. Ten days ago they were sitting and doing nothing, now they’re here in India playing in a World Cup, it’s absolutely amazing for them.

“We’re all so excited to be here and ready to go,” he said.

Published on Feb 06, 2026