Mominul Haque quits as Bangladesh Test captain
After a disappointing run of form this year, Bangladesh Test skipper Mominul Haque announced his resignation on Tuesday to focus on his batting.
The 30-year-old made the announcement at the home of Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan during a meeting with BCB officials.
After the country’s Test series loss to Sri Lanka earlier this month, his batting has come under fire. There have been calls for him to resign ahead of the West Indies tour next month.
“I just told them I am unable to contribute to the side as a captain and failed to motivate the team. So I feel it is better if someone else is given the responsibility,” Mominul told reporters after the meeting.
“I feel that if I can concentrate on my batting it will be good for me as well as for the team.”
In six Test matches in 2022, Mominul has only one half-century and 162 runs to his name.
After an 88-run innings in Bangladesh’s eight-wicket triumph against New Zealand at Mount Maunganui in January, his form faded.
In the recent series against Sri Lanka, which Bangladesh lost 0-1, he only made 11 runs in three innings.
He claimed that BCB president Nazmul asked him to stay for the rest of the meeting, but he declined.
Mominul’s mentor and coach, Nazmul Abedin Fahim, told AFP that the captaincy had “affected his batting to a certain extent”.
“So, I think he should get rid of this load to return to form as a batsman,” he added.
Mominul has 3,525 runs in 53 Tests, including 11 centuries, which is the most by any Bangladeshi batter.
Mominul named Test captain for the West Indies tour by the BCB. However there is suspicion that Shakib Al Hasan will be reappointed.
After Shakib banned by the International Cricket Council for failing to report corrupt approaches, Mominul took over in November 2019.
Earlier in the morning, a board official said they were willing to change Mominul’s captain for the series if he so desired.
“Mominul given the captaincy at a crisis moment. We have to give him some respect. If he decides to quit, we will look for a replacement,” cricket operations chief Jalal Yunus told AFP.
On June 5, the team will depart for the West Indies.
During the tour, Bangladesh will also play three Twenty20 internationals and three one-day internationals.
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