Shakib Al Hasan, Bangladesh’s star all-rounder, has been named the next Test captain. Following Mominul Haque’s recent decision to step down from the position in order to focus on his batting, the Bangladesh Cricket Board re-appointed Shakib. Liton Das has been named the Vice-Captain of the team.
During the announcement, Nazmul Hassan, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) director told the press, “Three names were proposed. We had previously decided that we would have a vice-captain along with a new captain. So we have selected Shakib as the new captain and Litton as his deputy. They will carry out the responsibilities until further announcement.”
“As far as I know, he’ll play [in the West Indies]. After the series, there is a series against Zimbabwe. He is doubtful for that series. So, it’s difficult to say for how long Shakib will remain the captain of the Test team,” Hassan added when asked about the duration of Shakib’s stint as the captain.
Shakib was Bangladesh’s Test captain when Mominul took over after he was suspended by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for failing to report unethical approaches in 2019. Mominul led the team to three Test triumphs, including the historic victory in New Zealand.
It is to be noted that Shakib has only appeared in five of Bangladesh’s last thirteen Tests and has shown serious inconsistency in being part of the squad. The allrounder had just returned to Test cricket in the recently concluded series against Sri Lanka, was the frontrunner for the Bangladesh cricket team’s captaincy. However, his absence from the sport in recent years has hampered his ability to succeed in this attempt.
Shakib has previously served as Test captain on two occasions. Once in West Indies in 2009, for the first time. In 2017, he took over as captain, succeeding Mushfiqur Rahim. In 2011, Shakib was removed from his captaincy. In December 2017, the all-rounder was selected captain of the Test and T20I teams. Shakib has led Bangladesh to 14 Test victories. Bangladesh won three Test matches when he was captain. Shakib scored 918 runs at 35.3 in 14 innings and got 61 wickets.
With the way Bangladesh Team has shown improvement in recent years and how they have established themselves in the international cricket, a lot of credit for it goes to Shakib al Hasan, who has been their ambassador in various leagues worldwide and proved his mettle as a skilled player. A big congratulations to the newly appointed captain and we hope to see him and his team flourish.
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