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Bangladesh women’s national cricket team captain Nigar Sultana has decided to step down as the team’s T20I captain after the Asian Games 2026. Now, Nigar Sultana reacted to her decision after Bangladesh suffered a heavy defeat against India in the semi-final.
This defeat ended Bangladesh’s hopes of winning the gold medal at the Asian Games 2026. Nigar had already informed the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) that she did not want to continue as T20I captain after the Asian Games 2026 in Japan. Earlier, Aliya Riaz faces trolling after poor fielding for Pakistan in Asian Games.
Nigar Sultana breaks silence on captaincy exit amid BCB support reports
Following her decision, there were reports that Nigar Sultana was not happy with the lack of support from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) during difficult times. She has now made it clear that her decision is mainly about giving more attention to her batting and contributing more as a player.
Nigar believes that she still has plenty to offer Bangladesh as a batter and player. She has therefore decided to move away from T20I captaincy so she can concentrate more on her own game.
Speaking to reporters after the India game, Nigar Sultana said, as quoted by Cricbuzz, "No, it's totally false that I left because I was hurt." As a batter, as a player, I have a lot more to give to my country and my team. So I want to focus on that, and that's why I made this decision.”
The Asian Games 2026 semi-final against India was her final T20I match as captain. She will now look to contribute to the team without the extra pressure of leadership. Amid this, Match fixing? Wanindu Hasaranga’s bizarre hit-wicket dismissal in ENG vs SL clash sparks speculation.
Nigar Sultana opens up on Bangladesh’s batting disaster against India
Bangladesh’s batting woes continued in the Asian Games 2026 semi-final at Korogi Sports Park in Nisshin. After being asked to bowl first, Bangladesh allowed India to score a massive 195/4.
Shafali Verma smashed her maiden T20I century. She remained unbeaten on 100 from just 49 balls, putting India in complete control. Chasing the target, Bangladesh were bowled out for just 81 in 15.4 overs, suffering a huge 114-run defeat.
Nigar admitted that Bangladesh’s batting failed badly while chasing such a big target. She also felt that better bowling could have restricted India to a lower total. She pointed out that even one top-order batter staying until the end could have helped Bangladesh add more runs.
She explained, “When you're chasing a big total, this kind of collapse is natural. With slightly better bowling, we could have restricted them to fewer runs. When a team collapses for so few runs, we as batters definitely take no responsibility. If even one top-order batter had stayed till the end, we could have added more runs.”
Rain hurts Bangladesh preparation for Asian Games 2026
Nigar Sultana also highlighted Bangladesh’s poor preparation in Japan. Rain left the team with only around two days of proper practice. Their match against China was washed out, while a planned warm-up game against China also did not happen. Nigar felt the rain badly affected the team’s preparation and overall performance in the Asian Games 2026.
She added, “We have virtually no training facilities here. Had we played that first match against China, it would have been much better for the whole team. But we missed that opportunity too. Overall, I'll say the entire team played very poor cricket.”
Bangladesh will now face Pakistan in the bronze medal match. Nigar remains positive about the contest, with Bangladesh having a strong record against Pakistan. The match will also give her one final opportunity to lead Bangladesh in the T20I format.
