Follow UsBangladesh left-handed batter Najmul Hossain Shanto stepped down as captain of the Test side after the team lost 1-0 against Sri Lanka in Colombo on June 28, 2025.
Shanto took a moment during the press conference after conceding the series to Sri Lanka to make his announcement, which, according to him, will ensure that Bangladesh won’t have as many as three skippers for the three formats. Notably, Mehidy Hasan Miraz is Bangladesh’s ODI skipper, and Litton Das captains them in T20Is.
"I have an announcement to make. "I am stepping down from the Bangladesh Test captaincy,” Shanto informed.
“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. If the cricket board feels they will continue with three captains in three formats, that will be their decision."
Shanto also added that he had informed the cricketing dispensation in Bangladesh about his decision a few days back itself, and it wasn’t a decision taken hastily. He clarified that this is not a decision based on any personal qualms after being snubbed from ODI captaincy before beginning the Sri Lanka tour.
"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," he added.
"I want to make it clear again: this is for the betterment of the team. There is nothing personal here. I already informed the cricket operations department a few days back."
Bangladesh played 14 Tests under Shanto, and their best moment came when they won the away Test series in Pakistan, their first in history. Shanto also recently became the first Bangladeshi skipper to hit two centuries in the same Test during the first Test of the series that got over today, June 28, against Sri Lanka.