'Changing captaincy will not solve everything': BCB to take time regarding Mahmudullah's T20I captaincy
Bangladesh failed to register a single win in the T20I series against West Indies and Mahmudullah's poor performance has been under the scanner for a while.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Nazmul Hassan Papon has said that the board will take time regarding Mahmudullah Riyad's T20I captaincy. The BCB president further mentioned that they didn't have any discussions about T20I captaincy in Sunday's board meeting, rather they are waiting for the team to return home and then sit with Mahmudullah.
Bangladesh failed to register a single win in the T20I series against West Indies and Mahmudullah's poor performance has been under the scanner for a while. In the eight T20Is Bangladesh played since the T20 World Cup last year, Mahmudullah bagged only 103 runs at an average of 12.87. His strike rate during this period is just 101.98, that's pretty poor considering modern T20I cricket.
Bangladesh also had a poor outing in T20I cricket in the last 10 months. After winning back-to-back series against Australia and New Zealand at home, the Tigers failed to win a single match in the group stage of the ICC T20 World Cup, and they tasted defeat against Scotland in the qualifiers earlier. Bangladesh lost the T20I series against Pakistan at home before drawing one against Afghanistan at home.
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But Papon doesn't buy the idea that everything will change overnight only by changing captaincy.
"I don't think changing T20I captaincy will bring better results overnight. We have to think long-term here as well," Papon said.
"It'll take almost a month (to take the decision). Let the team and captain return home first, then we will have a discussion."
Papon admitted Mahmudullah has been underperforming and that's why there is a call for removing him from captaincy. But the BCB president believes one or two good innings will solve the problem.
"Yes, he has been underperforming. He is not scoring enough runs. But changing his captaincy will not solve anything," Papon added.
Bangladesh next play Zimbabwe in the three-match T20I series later this month. Mahmudullah is expected to lead the side there. But what happens after that remains a question for now.
