Bangladesh Test Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto Resigns After Sri Lanka Defeat

Najmul Hossain Shanto has resigned from his position as the Bangladesh Test captain. The announcement follows Bangladesh's heavy defeat to Sri Lanka in Colombo.

Najmul Hossain Shanto's ODI captaincy recently ended © AFP

Najmul confirmed his decision at the post-match press conference. He stated, "I am stepping down from the Bangladesh Test captaincy. I don't want to continue as captain in this format... this is not a personal matter. It is entirely for the betterment of the team, and I believe this will help the team."

He further explained that he believes having separate captains for each format (Test, ODI, and T20I) is not ideal for Bangladesh cricket. Najmul had previously relinquished the T20I captaincy, and the ODI captaincy was recently assigned to Mehidy Hasan.

"Over the last few years, I have had the opportunity to be in this dressing room, and I don't feel it is logical to have three captains for three formats... In my view, having three captains will be difficult for the team. So, for the betterment of the team, I am stepping down," Najmul elaborated.

He also addressed concerns that his decision might be linked to the ODI captaincy change. "I just hope people don't see this as a personal issue or think I did this because I felt bad about the ODI captaincy snub... this is for the betterment of the team. There is nothing personal here," he emphasized.

Najmul revealed that he had communicated his intentions to the cricket operations department a few days prior to the public announcement.