Najmul Hossain Shanto. (Photo Source: Twitter)
Bangladesh head coach Chandika Hathurusinghe is mighty impressed with Najmul Hossain Shanto’s leadership skills. Under his captaincy, Bangladesh managed to finish the T20I series 1-1, which was their best-ever result in New Zealand. Following this, the 55-year-old stated that the cricketer has what it takes and the selectors should consider him a long-term prospect.
He added that Shanto was tactically very sound in the series and had clear communications with all the other players in the team. In the absence of regular skipper Shakib Al Hasan and many other senior cricketers, the 25-year-old is said to have instilled fearlessness in the current batch, which is important for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
“The attitude of the players, this young group had no fear. They wanted to compete in the middle. The other thing… the leadership of Shanto. Outstanding. He was tactically spot on, and very clear with the messages with the players, what he expects from them. And I thought we did the basics longer than before,” Hathurusingha was quoted as saying ESPNcricinfo.
“Seniors not (being) here has nothing to do with these guys’ attitude. They enjoy their cricket, and I think the environment in the dressing room is much better because the communication is very clear, as I said, from Shanto. And they know they are good enough players to compete. That’s why there’s no fear in the players’ minds,” he added.
Meanwhile, Shanto is the first Bangladesh captain to win an ODI match in New Zealand. Hathurusingha mentioned that he has shown enough evidence to be considered as a full-term and left the court open for the selectors to decide.
“I think they (the Bangladesh selectors) will strongly think about that,” Hathurusingha said. “Of course, it’s a board decision, but Shanto has shown enough evidence for them to take him seriously,” he added.
Meanwhile, in the final T20I of the series, the batters failed to live up to their potential as they were bundled out for 110 runs. New Zealand chased down with absolute ease to prevent Bangladesh from winning the series.