Bangladesh ‘mentality’ in SA contributed to Hathurusingha exit: BCB head

ESPNCricinfo: Chandika Hathurusingha’s disenchantment with the Bangladesh team led to his resignation midway through the South Africa tour in October. BCB president Nazmul Hassan made this statement after meeting the now former Bangladesh head coach in Dhaka, where he arrived on Saturday to tie up loose ends in his workplace of three years.

Chandika Hathurusingha and Mashrafe Mortaza have a chat AFP

Hathurusingha, Hassan said, was particularly frustrated with the board allowing Shakib Al Hasan to rest during the Test series against South Africa. Hassan said that there were several other issues, apart from what transpired in South Africa, which added up to the coach’s decision to quit.

“He is very disappointed with the South Africa tour,” Hassan said. “The type of cricket, the mentality, everything. He said he couldn’t believe the cricket Bangladesh played during the tour. He had problem with the cricketers’ mentality. For example, he didn’t agree with the fact that Shakib didn’t go to play the Test series. What he said was, ‘Why won’t he play such an important series for the team?’

“There were several other issues which we didn’t address at the time. There was a communication gap. So putting it all together, he felt that he didn’t have much more to give to this team. He gave what he could, [but felt now] that he should leave this team. He felt that Bangladesh won’t be going forward the way it was moving.”

News of Hathurusingha’s resignation broke ten days after the team had returned home from South Africa. Later in the day, Hassan confirmed, the BCB had accepted his decision. A month later, Sri Lanka appointed him their new head coach.

Several hours after arriving in Dhaka, Hathurusingha met with the BCB top brass that included president Hassan, CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury and directors Ismail Haider Mallick, Khaled Mahmud and Akram Khan.

Hassan said that Hathurusingha is in the process of submitting a report on the South Africa tour, but that he had already told the BCB of his views on the future of the Bangladesh team.

“He spoke particularly about issues that will help take Bangladesh cricket forward. He told us about the things we need to do, avoid, and look into in order to take the next step in our progress.

“He even said, when talking about a cricketer, that ‘you supported him for 10 years and he also gave you a lot. Now if you take action against him, it will not solve anything. You have to get the best out of him’. He said that if we can climb over mental barriers, Bangladesh can do a lot better.”

Shakib named new Bangladesh Test captain

Shakib Al Hasan

ESPNCricinfo: Shakib Al Hasan has been named Bangladesh’s new Test captain, and the upcoming Sri Lanka tour will be his first assignment in the new role. Mahmudullah will be the vice-captain. The BCB has not named a new coach yet.

“We can’t really tell you the exact reason but we felt that Mushfiqur [Rahim] needs to focus on his batting and remain pressure-free,” BCB president Nazmul Hassan said.

Bangladesh’s last assignment was their abysmal tour of South Africa where they were whitewashed in all three formats. Under Mushfiqur, they lost the two Tests by massive margins - 333 runs in Potchefstroom and an innings and 254 runs in Bloemfontein.

They lost seven of the nine Tests they played this year - losing two in New Zealand, one in India, drawing a two-match series in Sri Lanka 1-1, and drawing against Australia 1-1 at home before heading to South Africa.

Mushfiqur’s captaincy had come under scrutiny in South Africa, and a decision on his future was expected once the team returned from the tour. Soon, news emerged that head coach Chandika Hathurusingha had stepped down during the South Africa tour and the BCB soon started looking for his successor. The board has now shortlisted a few candidates and is expected to announce a replacement soon.

Leading Bangladesh in the longest format will not be new to Shakib but it something he will take up after over six years; he led them in nine Tests in the past. His first Test as captain was against West Indies in 2009 before leading the side for seven more matches in the first half of 2010, and one more Test in August 2011 against Zimbabwe. Bangladesh won only one of those matches - against West Indies in 2009 - and lost the remaining eight.