Najmul Hossain Shanto has stepped down as captain of the Bangladesh Test team following the Tigers’ innings and 78-run defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka in the second Test in Colombo on Saturday.
After a high-scoring draw in the series opener at Galle , Bangladesh were thoroughly outplayed in the second Test at the Sinhalese Sports Club – getting bowled out for 247 and 133 in response on either side of the hosts’ total of 458.
“I have an announcement to make. I am stepping down from the Bangladesh Test captaincy. I don’t want to continue as captain in this format, and I want to give a clear message to everyone: this is not a personal matter. It is entirely for the betterment of the team, and I believe this will help the team,” Shanto said at the press-conference after the match.
Shanto not a fan of a different captain for each format
The top-order batter, who had starred in the Galle Test – the first match of the 2025-27 cycle of the ICC World Test Championship – with twin centuries (148 and 125), added that Bangladesh did not need a different captain in each format.
Shanto was leading Bangladesh in all three formats until recently, having overseen their campaigns in the 2023 ICC World Cup, the 2024 T20 World Cup as well as in the ICC Champions Trophy earlier this year.
The southpaw had stepped down from T20I captaincy in January, the role of which went to wicketkeeper-batter Litton Das, while the Bangladesh Cricket Board opted to name spin-bowling all-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz as the ODI skipper.
“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. This is completely my personal opinion. The cricket board might think otherwise, and I fully respect that. In my view, having three captains will be difficult for the team. So, for the betterment of the team, I am stepping down,” he explained.
“If the cricket board feels they will continue with three captains in three formats, that will be their decision. 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. I want to make it clear again: this is for the betterment of the team. There is nothing personal here,” he added.
“I already informed the cricket operations department a few days back,” he said.
