BCB president Nazmul Hassan has said the upcoming three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe will be Mashrafe Mortaza's last assignment as Bangladesh captain. He said that a new captain will be named "within a month" as Bangladesh plan the road ahead for the 2023 World Cup.
Hassan also said that the board will be "lenient" on the 36-year old Mortaza's fitness levels in the lead-up to the ODI series against Zimbabwe, which begins with the first match in Sylhet on March 1. However, after the home series against Zimbabwe, Mortaza's place in the squad will depend upon his form and fitness, according to Hassan.
"We have started to stress on beep tests so Mashrafe may not pass the beep tests, so we can drop him if he doesn't pass it," he said. "We also have to keep it in mind that Mashrafe's leadership was vital in the turnaround in Bangladesh cricket. But, the time has come for him to decide how long he wants to play. I think Mashrafe will play the ODI series against Zimbabwe, pending fitness. We will be lenient about his fitness. But very soon, we have to decide on the team and captain for the next World Cup. We don't have much time. We will take our decision after this ODI series."
Hassan said that Mortaza had agreed on a retirement match at home during the 2019 World Cup, but the captain later changed his mind. Earlier in January this year, Mortaza had said that he will keep playing as long as he is enjoying the game, and not retiring just because the BCB president has said that they would throw a big party.
Before Bangladesh travel to Pakistan for a solitary ODI on April 3, the BCB is likely to name the new captain.
"Retirement depends on individual players," Hassan said. "We know that top players retire on their own will. We also wanted to give him a good send-off. He can play if he wants to, but I am more concerned about the captaincy. Once we declare on the captaincy, he can enter the team on his performance.
"When I spoke to him during the World Cup, we discussed that if we can arrange a home ODI, he will retire. After returning, he changed his mind. And then he also said that he doesn't want a send-off. He never told me. I saw it in the media. We have taken a month or a month and a half to decide our next ODI captain."
Hassan was also critical of the Test side, saying he wasn't hopeful of Bangladesh beating Zimbabwe in the one-off Test. After holding a meeting with the Test side on Wednesday, Hassan addressed the media.
"I have been seeing in the media in the last few days that things will be great after beating Zimbabwe. I don't see it happening," he said. "I have no hope. I told them, if you take them lightly, it will be a big disaster. Zimbabwe is where Zimbabwe was. We are not where we were. They have recently performed better than us.
"If someone asks me what was Bangladesh's worst performance at home, I'd say losing to Afghanistan. It was unacceptable. If we lose to Afghanistan, we can lose to Zimbabwe. We need to have a new mindset. Our seniors must take the major responsibilities, and it has to be a team game."
Hassan slammed the T20I side for losing 2-0 in Pakistan. He also called the Test captain Mominul Haque as "soft" and "shy", and someone who would need help from senior pros like Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim.
"I told them that it was unacceptable to lose to Pakistan in the T20Is," he said. "Nobody would say that we played poorly in India, but I told them that I didn't like their approach and mindset in the Pakistan T20I series. I spoke to them about these things, ones that I had mentioned in the media but I wasn't finding time to speak to the players. I reinforced that we are almost unbeatable at home, and we must beat at least four or five teams in their home conditions.
"I told them, 'don't take Zimbabwe lightly'. We must work in a planned way. Mominul is new, plus he is quite shy. Soft. I told Tamim and Mushfiq must be involved fully to charge up the team."
In a bizarre twist, Hassan also informed the media that he had ordered the Bangladesh players and management that they would have to inform him of the playing XI, down to the batting line-up, before the game.
"I want to know the game plan on the day before the game, and the playing XI," he said. "Why? It started from the World Cup and then the Afghanistan series, there is a total change; nothing has happened the way I expected. Those who had never played in the top order were given those roles. It was experimentation. In Pakistan too, what was told to me didn't happen.
"I have told them that they have to give me the batting sequence and cannot drop a player in one game and then pick him again. I understand that they want to try a few boys. Our coach, who is relatively new, wants to see the fast bowlers. But whatever happens, they have to let me know in advance."