Mominul Haque, a left-handed batter, has stepped down as Bangladesh's Test captain following the team's series loss to Sri Lanka at home.
The captaincy pressure hurt Mominul, who has captained Bangladesh in the longest format since October 2019. In 2022, he struggled with the bat as well, averaging just 16.20 with 162 runs in six games.
Under Mominul's leadership, Bangladesh only won three Tests, losing 12 and drew two.
"Even if your team doesn't win, you may still motivate your teammates if you perform well. When I'm not scoring and the squad isn't winning, I find captaining a team difficult. I believe it is best for you to step down as captain "Mominul was said to have said
"I believe I should concentrate on my batting. It wasn't a difficult choice. A captain must contribute, or otherwise there will be a lot of pressure. I was told to stay on by the board president, but I don't want to be the captain "He went on to say.
Bangladesh began 2022 with a historic victory in Mount Maunganui against New Zealand, but they went on to lose four of their next five Tests. They were defeated in series by both South Africa and Sri Lanka.
Mominul met with BCB president Nazmul Hassan following the loss in the second Test against Sri Lanka in Mirpur last week, signalling his desire to step down from the captaincy in order to focus on his batting, according to ESPNcricinfo.
Shakib Al Hasan is one of the candidates being considered to succeed Mominul, although the team has yet to appoint a full-time captain.
"Mominul's captaincy does not affect me. I didn't receive any communication from the coaches, either. He hasn't scored any runs, which is always a concern for a batter. Mominul is having a mental breakdown. We believe in him, I informed him right after the Dhaka Test "According to Nazmul, he spoke to the Daily Star.
"I've also heard that Shakib is being considered for the Test captaincy. Shakib used to captain all three formats, but I'm curious as to what he's available for today. When he is the captain, he cannot make last-minute decisions concerning his availability. We need to talk to him about it first. Other names are also being discussed. We must make a well-considered judgement. We can't just make someone a captain on the spur of the moment "He went on to say.
Shakib has previously served as Bangladesh's Test captain on several occasions. However, his future in Test cricket has been a point of contention in recent months, with the allrounder vacillating between red-ball and white-ball commitments.
Shakib had reportedly requested a break from Test cricket from the BCB in February, but he was nonetheless selected for the South Africa tour. Shakib had claimed to be "jaded" at the time, and had asked a vacation from international cricket, which the BCB eventually granted him.
However, Nazmul openly questioned Shakib's loyalty to his country, and Shakib was included in the tour to South Africa after another round of discussions between the allrounder and the BCB chairman.