Najmul Hossain Resigns as Bangladesh Test Skipper Following Sri Lanka Defeat

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

Najmul Hossain Shanto no longer leads the ODI team. © AFP

Najmul addressed the media after the match, stating, "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... 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 his belief that Bangladesh doesn't require separate captains for each format of the game. This decision comes after Mehidy Hasan was appointed as the ODI captain. Najmul had also previously stepped down as the T20I captain.

"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 stated.

He emphasized that his decision should not be interpreted as a reaction to being removed from the ODI captaincy. "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."

Najmul confirmed that he had communicated his decision to the cricket operations department a few days prior to the announcement.