Litton Das has captained Bangladesh in all three formats, but those were unofficial stints. Now, the BCB has officially handed him the T20 captaincy.
After becoming the official captain, Litton said that earlier his plans were limited to series-by-series, but now he will have long-term plans. However, he still wants to take each series seriously. He clearly stated, “If you get enough time, you can organize many things.” Bangladesh’s senior assistant coach Mohammad Salahuddin had mentioned after the Champions Trophy that players did not get much time to prepare. This time, Litton has ample time before stepping onto the global stage, and he has spoken about utilizing this period for all kinds of preparation. Yet, Litton admitted that when there are international fixtures, it becomes difficult to plan based on skills alone.
When asked whether he is concerned about facing a similar situation again, Litton replied, “I last played international cricket in December. Since then, I haven’t scored much with the bat. After that, I played in the BPL and DPL. I’ll try to perform. If I perform, the situation will change. I’ve played poorly even without captaincy. Now maybe the performance can rise. There’s no pressure here. Even as a captain, things could go wrong. I’ll try to turn the outcome in my favor.”
Regarding team planning, Litton said, “If the players perform, the team will move forward. As time progresses, I will be able to involve myself more in planning. But first and foremost, the players’ performance is crucial. I will try to execute what I have within me on the field.”
On the question of why a junior player isn’t given the captaincy, Litton referred to former captains and said, “I haven’t seen any junior being made captain.”
Speaking about the 16-member squad selected for two series, Litton said, “The 16-member squad was selected with everyone’s input.” This means Litton’s suggestions were also taken into account. The selectors usually consult the captain when finalizing the team. This time, Litton was involved in that process.
Along with Litton, Sheikh Mahedi Hasan has been given the vice-captaincy. On this, Litton said, “The BCB has made a thoughtful decision. Mahedi is one of Bangladesh’s core players.”
Litton usually bats in the top order in T20s. Now, after becoming captain, when asked at what position he will bat, he declined to comment. He said, “What I want or what I prefer—I won’t say.”
