Najmul Hossain Shanto believes Bangladesh are going into Champions Trophy to become ‘Champions’ – India TV

Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossan Shanto feels that his team are contenders for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 despite being put in a group featuring India, Pakistan and New Zealand. 

Shanto feels that his team is heading into the tournament to become champions. “We are going to the Champions Trophy to become champions,” Shanto said. “All eight teams deserve to be champions in this tournament. They are all quality teams. I believe our team has the ability. No one will feel extra pressure. Everyone genuinely wants (to become champions), and believes in their capabilities. We don’t know what Allah has written in our fate. We are working hard and doing our best. I believe we can achieve our goal.”

Bangladesh have not been at their best in ODIs recently. They have suffered series defeats against Afghanistan and also West Indies. The Bangla Tigers have lost 24 of the 41 matches they have played since the start of 2023. 

Bangladesh’s last ODI series came against the Windies in December 2024 which they lost by 3-0. The team will also be without talisman Shakib Al Hasan, who has also been suspended from bowling in top cricket due to an illegal action. He had failed an independent assessment of his action.

Shanto said that the team will miss Shakib. “Of course, we will miss him but I don’t know why this question is being asked,” Shanto said. “Everyone already knows the answer, and many players have said it before. Of course, we will miss Shakib bhai. It would have been great if he were here. This question has been answered many times. I don’t think it’s relevant to talk about this before a tournament.”

Shanto expects that the Pakistan pitches will see high-scoring games. “I expect the pitches in Pakistan to be 300-plus wickets. If we bat first, we need to put up such scores. Even while defending, we will need to defend such scores. In Dubai, conditions vary at different times. Still, I think scores will be around 260-280. It’s tough to predict exact numbers, but historically, that’s how it has been. We will analyse how many runs are needed on a given day or how many we need to restrict the opposition to.”