New Delhi. The drama of Bangladesh cricket captaincy has once again taken a new turn. Bangladesh Cricket Board made a big announcement through social media, which surprised both fans and cricket pundits. The country’s best Hindu wicketkeeper-batsman Liton Das was appointed as the new captain of Bangladesh men’s ODI team. Liton was already commanding the team in T20 International matches, now he will be the face of Bangladeshi cricket in both the limited overs formats.
Litton Das has replaced off-spin all-rounder Mehdi Hasan Miraj in this role. This decision is surprising in many ways, because Miraj’s record as a captain was quite excellent. Between October 2025 and June 2026, Miraj led Bangladesh to four consecutive ODI series victories under his captaincy. Miraj had created a new history by defeating legendary teams like West Indies, Pakistan, New Zealand and Australia at their home (on the soil of Mirpur).
Defeat against Zimbabwe became the reason for Mirage being stripped of captaincy
In the world of sports, one defeat sometimes ruins all your previous records. In July 2026, Bangladesh suffered a humiliating 2-1 defeat in the three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe. Miraj had to pay the price of this one series defeat by losing his captaincy. However, if seen through the prism of statistics, under the leadership of Miraj, Bangladesh played a total of 24 ODI matches, out of which they won 10 and lost 13. Despite winning four out of the last five series, the defeat to Zimbabwe was unbearable for the board.
BCB trusts on the model with two captains
BCB President Tamim Iqbal, while talking to journalists, clarified the thinking behind this big change. Tamim said that the board is now focusing on the ‘two captains model’. BCB believes that instead of having three different captains in all three formats, the best way is to have one white-ball captain and one red-ball captain.
Who got what responsibility?
Under this new arrangement, Liton Das will now be the captain of the white ball (ODI and T20), while Nazmul Hussain Shanto will continue to hold the command of the red ball as the captain of the Test team. Young batsman Tauheed Hridoy has been made the new vice-captain of limited overs, while the responsibility of Test vice-captain will remain with Mehdi Hasan Miraz.
All-rounder Mirage expected to return to form
Tamim Iqbal expressed sympathy over the decision to remove Miraj and said that Miraj has been a very successful captain, but the team needs Miraj as a great cricketer more than a captain. The board felt that due to the burden of captaincy, his performance was losing some sparkle. Even though Miraj was contributing well with the bat, there was scope for improvement in his bowling. BCB wants Miraj to be able to concentrate on his individual game, especially his bowling, without any pressure.
Liton Das has captaincy experience
On the other hand, the responsibility of taking Bangladeshi cricket in a new direction is now on the shoulders of Liton Das. Liton already has some experience of captaincy. He has previously led the team as acting captain in seven ODI matches, in which Bangladesh won three and lost three. Now he will take over this responsibility full time.
Liton’s ODI career has been brilliant
Liton Das’s record as a batsman has been very impressive. Liton, who has experience of 104 ODI matches, has scored 2,869 runs, which includes 5 centuries and 14 half-centuries. He is counted among the most reliable and aggressive batsmen of Bangladesh in the present era. He played his last ODI match against Australia in Mirpur on 14 June.
