Abahani have parted ways with their long-serving head coach Khaled Mahmud Sujon ahead of the upcoming Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League (DPL) season and replaced the 53-year-old with former national selector Hannan Sarkar.  

Sujon, who had been at the helm since 2016, confirmed the development to The Daily Star on Friday. 

"I made the Abahani team but at the last moment, they decided not to keep me [as head coach]," Mahmud said. 

"Sheikh Mamun bhai told me to form the team. Then I completed all the formalities. A day before yesterday, I heard they won't keep me and will pick Hannan as head coach."

Under Sujon, Abahani won four DPL titles, including last year's title which they on being undefeated throughout the competition. 

It was learnt that Sujon would take charge of the newly-promoted Gulshan Cricket Club for the upcoming season. 

Abahani revealed Hannan's appointment via a Facebook post from their official account on Friday afternoon. Hannan, a former Bangladesh opener, recently resigned as national selector to return to coaching. The 42-year-old worked as a batting coach and assistant coach in domestic competitions, including the DPL, Bangladesh Cricket League and Bangladesh Premier League. He also served as a head coach for Dhaka Metro in the National Cricket League in 2014.

Before joining the national selection panel in 2024, Hannan worked as an age-group selector from July 2016 to February 2024. During that period, the Bangladesh Under-19 Men's Cricket team won the ICC U-19 World Cup for the first time in South Africa in 2020.