The photo of Bangladeshi women cricketers playing in burqas is fake
A photo is being circulated on social media claiming that two Bangladeshi women cricketers played wearing burqas during a match in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup against New Zealand. However, fact-check by Dismislab found the claim is false. At no stage of the match were any members of the Bangladesh women’s cricket team seen playing in burqas.
A Facebook page named “Inspired Analyst” posted the photo. Its caption read, “Two Bangladeshi women cricketers have shown the world that the veil is not a barrier, rather it is protection; and modesty is not weakness, it is strength. A Bangladeshi player is playing cricket in Islamic attire. Masha Allah.”
In the photo, two women wearing black burqas are seen standing in the field. One of them is wearing knee pads and gloves, typically worn by batters, and part of a bat can be seen under her burqa. The other woman is not wearing gloves. On the left side of the image, the official ICC logo can be seen, along with the text “Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025.” At the top right corner of the photo, the word “LIVE” is written.
The bottom of the photo shows the match score. From the score, it appears that a match between Bangladesh and New Zealand is in progress, and Bangladesh is batting. According to the score, after three overs, Bangladesh scored seven runs without losing a wicket. Batter Jhilik scored four runs, and her partner Supta scored three runs. At the bottom right corner of the image, the logo of Google’s AI model “Gemini” can also be seen.
The same photo was also shared from activist Imtiaz Mahmood’s verified X (formerly Twitter) account with the caption, “Women’s cricket tournament in Bangladesh.” The image was also shared on several other X accounts (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7), YouTube and Facebook profiles and pages (1, 2, 3).
To fact-check the photo, Dismislab reviewed the highlights of the Bangladesh vs. New Zealand match held on October 10 on the official ICC website. In the 7-minute highlight video, at 3 minutes and 46 seconds, Rubaiya Haider Jhilik can be seen preparing to bat, along with Sharmin Akter Supta. Both were wearing the national team jersey.
At 3 minutes and 48 seconds of the video, Bangladesh’s score is seen as 7 runs with no wickets lost. Jhilik has scored 4 runs, and Supta has scored 3 runs. It is the first ball of the fifth over. Supta is batting while Jhilik stands at the non-striker’s end. Jhilik’s jersey clearly shows her name and number (10).
On that very ball, Supta gets out. The runs of both batters and Bangladesh’s total runs match exactly with those shown in the viral image. However, in the ICC highlights, neither of the cricketers was seen wearing a burqa. Both were clearly wearing the Bangladesh team jersey.
Dismislab also reviewed ICC’s clothing and equipment rules and regulations. Under the “General Prohibitions” section, subsection 2 clearly states, “Under these regulations, it is prohibited for any individual to wear clothing or use equipment that has been changed, modified, or otherwise altered (whether in accordance with these regulations or otherwise), and that, in the opinion of a match official, brings into question the standard expected of a top-level player. For example, altering the shape of clothing or equipment, covering it with sticking plasters or marker pens, or wearing batting pads that have been repainted and are peeling or faded — all are prohibited.”
In other words, according to ICC regulations, a player cannot wear anything that alters or covers their official jersey. Therefore, it is practically impossible for a player to play wearing a burqa, as that would violate ICC rules. However, the ICC does allow players to wear hijabs.
To check whether the photo was created using artificial intelligence, Dismislab uploaded the image to “Undetectable AI.” The tool indicated that the image might be AI-generated.
Hence, it can be conclusively said that the claim that Bangladeshi women cricketers played wearing burqas is false, and the photo was likely generated using artificial intelligence.
Dismislab also found several other fact-check reports (1, 2, 3) that identified the image as fake. A report published by BOOM stated, “A morphed image is circulating on social media showing Bangladeshi women cricketers wearing burqas on the field. It is being claimed that this image shows a scene from the ICC Women’s World Cup 2025 match between New Zealand and Bangladesh. However, BOOM searched relevant keywords and found no news reports supporting this claim. We also reviewed the ICC’s official match highlights and found no evidence of Bangladeshi openers playing in burqas.”
It is worth noting that the Cricket World Cup began on September 30. So far, Bangladesh has played four matches in the tournament, against Pakistan, England, New Zealand, and South Africa. Bangladesh won the match against Pakistan but lost the other three. The tournament is being held in India and Sri Lanka. Although India is the host nation, Pakistan’s matches are being played in Sri Lanka due to political reasons.
Disclaimer: The original version of this fact-check report was published in Bengali on Dismislab’s Bengali website on October 14, 2025. The English translation was completed later; however, to maintain time accuracy and avoid any potential misinterpretation, the English version has been published with the original publication date.
