As their talismanic all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan apparently wants to renounce the captaincy of the ODI team after taking on the duty just over a month ago, it appears like Bangladesh will suffer a severe setback.
Prior to the 2023 Asia Cup, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) reinstalled Shakib Al Hasan as captain of the ODI team. He will also captain the “Bangla Tigers” in the upcoming 50-over World Cup, which will be held in India in October-November.
Shakib Al Hasan has notified the national cricket regulating body that he will not be captaining the team at the major competition, a BCB source told The Daily Star. At midnight, the 36-year-old and Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusingha met BCB president Nazmul Hassan Papon at his home and discussed his predicament.
According to BCB insiders, Shakib Al Hasan doesn’t want players who are only partially fit in his team, which is one of the reasons he doesn’t want to lead Bangladesh.
Despite having a back issue, Tamim Iqbal has been selected for Bangladesh’s 15-man World Cup roster. Fans are connecting the dots, and rumors of a potential cold war between two of Bangladesh’s best cricketers are intensifying by the minute. Tension between them has appeared on occasion before.
Bangladesh’s 2023 Asia Cup campaign was chaotic.
Shakib-led Bangladesh’s performance in the recently finished Asia Cup was hit and miss. They dropped two games—one to Pakistan and one to Sri Lanka. They finished their campaign in the Super Four stage of the championship in third position on the points table after defeating India and Afghanistan convincingly.
Currently, they are hosting a three-match ODI series against New Zealand. The Blackcaps are leading the series 1-0 after two games; the decisive contest will take place on Tuesday, September 26 in Mirpur.
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