Najmul Hossain Shanto resigned as Bangladesh Test captain after his side lost 0-1 in the two-match Test series in Sri Lanka.
After a draw in the first Test of the two-match series, at Galle, Sri Lanka thrashed Bangladesh by an innings in the second, at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo to claim the series.
At Galle, Shanto had become the first Bangladeshi (and 17th overall) captain to score two hundreds in a Test match, but he made eight and 19 not out at SSC.
Shanto stepped down as Test captain after the series. “I don’t want to continue [as captain] in the Test format anymore,” he said at the post-series press conference. “This is not personal. I have taken the decision for the betterment of the team. I think this will help the team.
“I have been a part of the dressing-room for the past few teams. I think three captains [for the three international formats] is not sensible. I don’t know what the board will feel about this, and I will support their decision. But this is my personal decision.
“I would want that no one feels this decision is emotional, or that I am disappointed by something. I want to make this clear. This is for the betterment of the team.”
Earlier this month, the Bangladesh Cricket Board had replaced Shanto with Mehidy Hasan Miraz as Test captain.
Shanto led Bangladesh in 14 Test matches, starting with the New Zealand series at home in 2023/24. Under him, Bangladesh won four and lost nine Tests. Only Mushfiqur Rahim (seven wins, 18 defeats in 34 Tests) has led them to more victories, while Shakib Al Hasan (four wins, 15 defeats in as many).
Of all Bangladesh captains to have led in three Tests, Shanto’s win-loss ratio of 0.444 is the best. The 2-0 triumph in Pakistan, against whom Bangladesh had never won a Test match until then, remains his greatest legacy.
