There’s no surprise here. It was already known that Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal would not be part of the squad. The only unexpected element is Liton Das’s exclusion. However, considering his recent performances, even that can’t be labeled as a shock.
For years, Liton was backed for his ‘talent,’ but now, ahead of such a major tournament, he finds himself left out. Unsurprisingly, Chief Selector Gazi Ashraf Hossain faced a barrage of questions in the press conference regarding Liton’s omission.
The explanation given by the chief selector makes it evident that Liton has lost the selectors’ confidence, especially after his poor performance in the ODI series in the West Indies (scores of 2, 4, 0).
According to the selector, Liton’s batting weaknesses have been exposed, making it easier for opponents to plan against him. He stated, ‘Liton is out of form. His dismissals follow a similar pattern. In white-ball cricket, he isn’t capitalizing on the powerplay. He’s struggling to stay at the crease and has been exposed. Opposition analysts have figured him out. Despite giving him chances, the trust isn’t there at the moment.’
The numbers don’t lie—Liton, 30, hasn’t scored in double digits in his last seven innings. Since his fifty against India in the 2023 World Cup, he has gone 14 consecutive innings without crossing fifty. Along with his form, the chief selector also pointed to the availability of better options, saying, ‘Soumya (Sarkar) and Tamim are performing well as an opening pair. They will likely start the innings, leaving no room for Liton in the playing XI. There’s no doubt about his class, but when a player is out of form, we need to work on that. Our specialists will have the opportunity to help him regain his form during this time.’
In the upcoming Champions Trophy, Bangladesh will face India in Dubai, where Liton scored a century against India during the 2018 Asia Cup. However, the selectors prioritized current form over past achievements. As the chief selector explained, ‘We do look at past performances, but recent form carries more weight. In the West Indies, we scored well in every match, crossing 300 twice on good batting wickets. Despite that, Liton failed to deliver, making it hard to trust him. We’ll be playing in Pindi, which is a great batting wicket—New Zealand scored 336 there and still lost. Runs have to come from the top order. We can’t afford to take someone out of form. This tournament will challenge both our batting and bowling.’
