Shanto steps down as Bangladesh Test captain after series loss against Sri Lanka

Najmul Hossain Shanto has stepped down as Bangladesh Test captain following the 1-0 series defeat to Sri Lanka on Saturday.

Shanto said he had already informed the BCB of his decision, which he took to reduce the number of captains within the Bangladesh set-up (they had one for each format), before bringing it to the public during the post-match press conference in Colombo after the second Test.

"I have an announcement to make," Shanto told reporters after Bangladesh were beaten by an innings and 78 runs. "I am stepping down from the Bangladesh Test captaincy. 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."

The BCB said that they were surprised by Shanto's decision. "We have been discussing the matter for some time, but I had no idea that he would announce it today," Nazmul Abedeen Fahim, BCB's cricket operations chairman, said. "It would have been good if this hadn't happened - not just because he was a successful captain, but because I have seen his leadership qualities from very close. He has done well as a captain and he is a good leader. If he had continued, it would have been very good for us. But since he has made this decision, I respect that."

Shanto had been Bangladesh's all-format captain but, earlier this year, quit the T20I role. Then, at a press conference before the team departed for Sri Lanka, he highlighted the importance of having a long-term ODI captain. This press conference happened on the same day as a meeting between the BCB directors, the outcome of which was Shanto being replaced as ODI captain by Mehidy Hasan Miraz. It is reported that Shanto was slighted by this sequence of events, but he avoided commenting on the matter.

"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 said. "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."

Under Shanto, Bangladesh won four out of 14 Tests. They started by beating New Zealand in Sylhet in November 2023 and peaked with a series win over Pakistan in August 2024. In Sri Lanka, Shanto became the first Bangladesh captain to hit two centuries in a Test match. He averaged 36.24 during his time leading the team which was a marked improvement from when he was just part of the ranks (29.83).

Shanto was first made a stop-gap captain in November 2023 following an injury to Shakib Al Hasan. He took over full-time in early 2024, the BCB giving him the reins across all formats for 12 months.

Bangladesh do not play Test cricket again until October, when they host Ireland, which gives the board some time to figure out who their new captain will be. Mehidy leads them in ODIs, Litton Das does so in T20Is. It is likely one of them will be tapped to perform the role in Tests too.