The biggest takeaway from the squad announcement is Bangladesh dropping former T20I captain Najmul Hossain Shanto, who was part of Bangladesh’s squad that toured Pakistan in May and the preceding UAE series. He played only one of those six matches. Having relinquished T20I captaincy in January after a poor run of form, Shanto now finds himself completely out of the squad.
In 2024, he scored just one fifty in his 21 T20I outings, averaging just 18.84. He recently stepped down from Test captaincy as well, following Bangladesh’s 0-1 series defeat against the same opposition.
Soumya Sarkar, Hasan Mahmud, Tanvir Islam, Nahid Rana and Khaled Ahmed, part of the Pakistan series, have also lost their place.
As Shanto’s replacement, the selectors have recalled left-handed batter Mohammad Naim, who last played for Bangladesh during the 2023 Asia Cup in September. Naim has been in red-hot form domestically, finishing as the leading run-scorer in both the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and National Cricket League (NCL) T20s. He amassed 827 runs at an average of 37.59 and a strike rate of 140.40, including one century and six fifties.
Also returning is seam-bowling all-rounder Mohammad Saifuddin, who last played for Bangladesh over a year ago. After being left out of the T20 World Cup squad, he took a break from cricket but has since made a strong comeback, claiming 37 wickets across the BPL and Dhaka Premier League (DPL). Left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed has earned a recall to the T20I squad after a two-year absence, replacing fellow left-armer Tanvir.
