Rating the Bangladesh Test captains so far

Since their inaugural Test match back in 2000 as a Test playing nation, Bangladesh has come a long way and can lay claim to being a serious Test team, after years of struggle. Along the way, they have gone through 8 full time captains in total and needless to say, none of them have a good record if they are compared to captains of other nations.

However, it is important to point out that these men will always be part of Bangladesh's history as a cricketing nation. So let's see how they stack up against one another.

8 Khaled Mashud

With a 100% loss record across 12 Tests spanning a period of 3 years from 2002 to 2005, former wicket-keeper batsman Khaled Mashud will go down in history as Bangladesh’s worst captain, at least statistically.

Six of those defeats came in tough away tours to New Zealand, South Africa and Sri Lanka, while Pakistan, West Indies and New Zealand beat them twice each at home. In spite of the poor record, it needs to be reiterated that the defeats were not only down to his captaincy.

The team did not have players who were capable of standing up for themselves at the international level. On the other hand, Mashud was probably one of the few world class players in the side and was regarded as one of the best wicket-keepers around during his time.

#7 Khaled Mahmud

All-rounder Khaled Mahmud became Bangladesh’s third captain and succeeded Kahled Mashud to the hot seat. However, his record was identical to Mashud’s save for the number of Tests. Mahmud recorded a 100% loss rate as well but he captained in 9 Tests.

That said, Mahmud’s captaincy saw Bangladesh push a major Test playing nation as far as possible when Pakistan escaped with a one wicket win in Multan back in 2003 and needless to say, his stint as captain might have been wholly different had they been able to take that final wicket.

Mahmud himself took 7 wickets in that Test and hence it can be said that his record is not a true reflection of his stint as Bangladesh Test captain. It could have been different.

6 Mohammad Ashraful

Bangladesh v Ireland: Group B - 2011 ICC World Cup

Disgraced former Bangladesh star Mohammad Ashraful was probably his nation’s first world class batsman but his spell as the national team captain was an eminently forgettable one. Bangladesh lost 12 out of 13 Tests and a rain affected game against New Zealand was drawn.

Ashraful’s captaincy was heavily criticised by the local media and before long it became a matter of time before he would be sacked by the selectors. He was considered one of the poorest captains the nation ever had.

5 Naimur Rahman

Naimur Rahman

Bangladesh’s first Test captain will always be part of cricket quiz questions in the years to come but as a captain, his stint was a forgettable one. He captained the team in 7 Tests from the year 2000 to 2001 and lost 6 of them, drawing one.

Having lost to India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and an away series in Zimbabwe, the team's nadir was reached in 2001 when Zimbabwe beat them at home. Rahman’s form as an off spinner and lower-middle order batsman had also dipped by the time and the selectors had no option but to sack him.

It is hard to rate him highly but then again there were very few international quality cricketers in the team at the time. Even that solitary draw was an achievement by their standards then.

4 Shakib Al Hasan

Bangladesh’s greatest all-rounder took over as temporary captain after captain Mashrafe Murtaza got injured in the West Indies tour in 2009 and in his very first Test, he led his nation to a memorable series winning victory.

However, it was all downhill from there on in as he failed to lead the side to another victory over the next two years. Losses to New Zealand, India and home and away to England soon raised questions about his captaincy. However, it was the loss to a depleted Zimbabwe side away from home that finally prompted the selectors to sack him.

Although his stint turned out to be a poor one, his success in the West Indies will always be in the memory of all Bangladesh fans.

3 Mashrafe Mortaza

Mashrafe Mortaza is the only Bangladesh captain with a 100% win record but that can be ignored since he has only captained in 1 Test. However, what cannot be ignored is that he led Bangladesh to their first ever Test ever victory on foreign soil when they beat an inexperienced West Indies side in 2009.

That particular achievement will always make Murtaza one of the iconic Bangladesh captains. However, his struggles with his knee injury and overall fitness made it close to impossible for Murtaza to last over 5 days in Test matches.

Considering his achievements as a limited overs captain, it can be said that Murtaza could have achieved a lot more as the nation’s Test captain for at least a few years.

2 Habibul Bashar

The captain who led Bangladesh to their first ever Test victory in 2005 will without a doubt go down in history as one of the nation’s finest captains. Habibul Bashar was the Test captain from 2004 to middle of 2007 and during his 18 Tests as captain, Bangladesh became a much-improved side.

Although Bashar’s team did lose 13 out of 18 Tests, his team also drew 4 Tests, two of them being away from home in Zimbabwe and the West Indies. Even drawing a Test was an achievement for Bangladesh in those days since the team had still not learned that a match that cannot be won shouldn’t necessarily be lost.

Under him, Bangladesh seemed to have turned a corner as a Test match team.

1 Mushfiqur Rahim

At number 1 and for good reason is Bangladesh’s current Test captain and wicketkeeper-batsman Mushfiqur Rahim.

Having been made captain in 2011, he is the nation’s most successful captain ever. Rahim has led Bangladesh to 7 wins in 32 Tests and lost only 10 of them while drawing the rest.

However, it must be pointed out that his better record as captain is also down to the fact that Bangladesh now produces plenty of cricketers who are of the international standard.

Although Bangladesh are still not that competitive away from home, they have made their home a fortress under Rahim’s captaincy and have drawn two test series with England and Australia over the past two seasons.