Just hours before their departure, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) officially announced the team’s vice-captain for the Champions Trophy.
The Bangladesh squad is set to leave Dhaka at 1 AM, and seven hours prior to their departure, BCB confirmed that Mehidy Hasan Miraz will serve as the vice-captain alongside skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto.
It’s rare for Bangladesh cricket to formally name a vice-captain. In fact, there have been several instances where the team has played series after series without one. This announcement marks a slight departure from the norm.
Miraz’s appointment, however, comes as no surprise. He has already stepped in as captain when Shanto was unavailable. He led the team in the final ODI against Afghanistan in Sharjah last November after Shanto was ruled out and later captained all three ODIs during Bangladesh’s tour of the West Indies in his absence.
During his leadership debut against Afghanistan, Miraz played a crucial 66-run knock. In the Caribbean, he impressed with the bat, scoring 74 and 77 in two of the three ODIs. With the ball, he took two wickets across his four matches as captain.
Miraz also led Bangladesh in two Test matches against the West Indies when Shanto was unavailable.
This isn’t the first time Miraz has officially taken up the role of vice-captain either. He has previously been Shanto’s deputy on different occasions.
Their leadership connection dates back to their U-19 days. Miraz captained Bangladesh to a third-place finish in the 2016 U-19 World Cup, with Shanto as his vice-captain. Two years earlier, Miraz also led the team to the Plate Championship title in the 2014 U-19 World Cup.
Bangladesh will begin their Champions Trophy campaign on Thursday against India in Dubai.
