Najmul reluctant to return as Test captain

The Bangladesh Cricket Board failed to convince former national skipper Najmul Hossain to change his mind as he refused to return as Test skipper after being offered the captaincy recently.

A BCB source confirmed the development to Cricbuzz on Saturday (October 25) while adding that Najmul, who earlier quit as Test captain after his ODI captaincy was literally snatched away by the board, had already informed the board about his decision.

BCB cricket operation chairman Nazmul Abedin had a long chat with Najmul following the third ODI between Bangladesh and West Indies at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on October 23 where he asked the southpaw to reconsider his decision.

"He (Najmul) is not interested to lead at the moment and informed us about his decision," a BCB official said on request of not to be named. The post of Test captain went vacant following the departure of Najmul after the Test series against Sri Lanka.

Bangladesh are looking for a suitable leader to lead the Test squad and are apparently looking to fill the void with current T20I skipper Litton Kumar Das. It was learnt the BCB is waiting for the consent of Litton as they are expected to play a two-match Test series against Ireland, scheduled to start from November 11 in Sylhet.

Current ODI skipper Mehidy Hasan, who also had shown interest to lead the Test squad, is unlikely to get the baton of the Test squad after his ODI captaincy came under scrutiny.

Despite winning the three-match ODI series against West Indies at home that came after four successive series losses, Mehidy failed to live up to the expectation and many inside the board are apprehensive over his tenure getting extended after the completion of the one-year period that began on June 12. Under Mehidy, Bangladesh have won only three games out of 13 so far in the format.

While handing the ODI captaincy to Mehidy, BCB insisted that they want to have three captains in three formats but as now that looks highly unlikely as BCB president Aminul Islam recently insisted that there is no hard and fast rule on captaincy.

"For Test cricket, we have a clear policy. Several discussions will take place - among the board, selectors, and top coaching staff - to identify the most suitable candidate. The player chosen must also agree to take on the role," Bulbul told reporters during the third ODI match between Bangladesh and West Indies at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on October 23.

The BCB boss also hinted at flexibility regarding the multi-captain approach. "There is no hard and fast rule that there must be three captains. It could be one person doing all three, one person doing two or one person doing one. It depends on discussions and what's best for the team," said Bulbul.

BCB can still stick to their stance of having three captains in three formats if they wish to have other options to lead the Test squad like Taijul Islam and Mominul Haque. Taijul earlier expressed in public that he wishes to lead the Test team while Mominul Haque, who had earlier stepped down as Test captain, told Cricbuzz that he is ready to reconsider Test captaincy if the board makes that offer.