The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has appointed Najmul Hossain Shanto as the captain across all three formats for the next year. The decision comes amid uncertainty surrounding Shakib al Hasan’s availability due to an eye problem.
BCB president Nazmul Hasan announced the appointment following a board directors meeting at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. He stated that Najmul’s appointment was made due to the lack of clarity regarding Shakib’s participation.
“We have decided to appoint Najmul Hossain Shanto across all formats. He will serve as the national team skipper this year,” Nazmul informed reporters.
With doubts over Shakib’s availability, the BCB opted for Shanto to lead the team. Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusingha had endorsed Shanto for long-term captaincy, impressed by his leadership in Shakib’s absence.
In addition to the captaincy decision, the BCB revamped the national selection panel, appointing former national captain Gazi Ashraf Hossain as the chief selector for the next two years. Changes to the selection panel include the inclusion of Khan Abdur Razzak and Hannan Sarkar, with Minhajul Abedin and Habibul Bashar not likely to retain their posts.
Meanwhile, senior batter Tamim Iqbal is not part of the central contracts released by the BCB, having requested exclusion. Ebadot Hossain is also absent from the senior contracts. Taskin Ahmed’s request to be excluded from Test matches resulted in his omission from the longer-format contract.
The BCB stated that they have received recommendations from a special committee formed to assess Bangladesh’s disappointing performance in the World Cup. They also mentioned plans to resolve issues surrounding Tamim Iqbal’s international career in upcoming discussions.
