Easiest option is to quit, but it can be discussed: Faruque says about Shanto's captaincy dilemma  

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Faruque Ahmed said quitting was the easiest option in response to Najmul Hossain Shanto's reported desire to step down as captain.  

It was reported by cricket website Cricbuzz that Shanto is unlikely to lead Bangladesh after the conclusion of the ongoing home Test series against South Africa. 

"The easiest option is if someone simply says, 'I don't want to do it, thank you,' and leaves. That's the easiest option. But if you really dig down to understand why they don't want to continue, and whether there are any underlying reasons, it's important to discuss those issues. We will talk," Faruque told reporters on Wednesday.

"I can't understand anything unless I sit with him. You can't make decisions based on reading newspapers. If I sit with him, I will know whether there's an issue, or he doesn't want to continue... I won't know until we sit down together. At this moment, there hasn't been any conversation with him directly."

Shanto has struggled immensely with the bat in recent months. He has registered just one fifty in his last 16 Test innings, managed to score 164 runs at a strike-rate of 102 in his last 10 T20Is but has fared better in the ODI having scored two fifties and a century in his last eight innings after a horrendous 2023 ODI World Cup campaign. As a skipper, the 26-year-old has so far captained the Tigers in nine Tests, nine ODIs and 24 T20Is. He led the side to three Test wins which included a 2-0 series win in Pakistan. He also won three ODIs and 10 T20Is at the same time.

"I don't know if Shanto has spoken with you... Sometimes social media news can affect them. Players actually need to be more aware of this, whatever they feel about it... Not about chain of command, I think there are a number of steps that could be taken, such as reaching out to Cricket operations, the CEO, or the president. I hope players will be mindful of this. If any player feels he can't continue, then that's a personal matter. If there's any such request, then we'll discuss it," Faruque said.

"Since taking on responsibility, we've had to handle forming BPL teams and several other issues that required our attention. I only got the chance to sit with the players once, and only 8-10 of them came, where we talked about BPL only. I'll be flying to Chattogram tonight to try to meet with the team, the coach, and everyone. Hopefully, there will be some outcome."

National team selector Hannan Sarkar confirmed to The Daily Star on Sunday that the selectors know about Shanto's plan to quit as captain from all three formats.

"I have heard about the matter [Shanto wanting to quit captaincy] but didn't get anything official like a letter. He may have informed verbally," Hannan said.