Najmul Hossain Shanto has stepped down as Bangladesh Test captain after the team's humiliating defeat against Sri Lanka in the second fixture at the Sinhalese Sports Club Cricket Ground in Colombo. Sri Lanka defeated Shanto-led Bangladesh by an inning and 78 runs to win the two-Test match series.
The fourth Day of the high-voltage second Test witnessed Bangladesh's lower-order collapse, as Prabath Jayasuriya ran through the visitors' line-up with a fifer. As soon as the game concluded, Shanto decided to resign from Test captaincy. The southpaw was Bangladesh's most successful batter in the two-match series against Sri Lanka. Batting at number three he scored 300 runs, including two successive tons in the first Test, at a magnificent average of 100.
Shanto said, "I don't want to continue [as captain] in the Test format anymore. This is not personal. I have taken the decision for the betterment of the team," Shanto said. "I think this will help the team. I have been a part of the dressing room for the past few years. 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 think three separate captains will be difficult for the team to deal with.
"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.
Shanto said that he had informed the BCB's cricket operations department of his decision "some days back". He had been replaced as ODI captain by Mehidy Hasan Miraz earlier this month.
Shanto led Bangladesh in 14 Tests after getting the role in 2023. During his tenure, the South Asian nation won four and lost nine Tests, including the recent defeat against the Lankans in Colombo. Now that he has left Test captaincy, it will be interesting to see which player the BCB picks as his replacement.