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Bangladesh national team captain Najmul Hossain Shanto on Thursday expressed his desire to have a higher finish in the new World Test Championship cycle despite admitting the fact that they have not been playing good cricket in recent times.Ìý

Bangladesh will begin their WTC cycle with an away series against Sri Lanka. The two-match Test series starts with the first Test at Galle on June 17, followed by the second Test in Colombo from June 25 to 29.

The tour will also feature three ODIs and three T20Is. The first contingent of the national team departed for Sri Lanka on Thursday, while the second group is scheduled to fly today.

Bangladesh concluded the last cycle of the WTC in seventh place out of nine teams. Currently, the final of that cycle is taking place at Lord’s between Australia and South Africa.Ìý

Shanto said that their four wins in the previous cycle would give them confidence.Ìý

‘We are a more confident unit after winning four Tests in the last WTC cycle,’ he said during a press conference at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Thursday.

‘We need that extra confidence against Sri Lanka, who are a strong team. If we can play up to our capacity, we can start well in this cycle.

‘We finished seventh in the last cycle, so the goal will be to be within the top four to six. Our win percentage in the last cycle was probably around 45 per cent. I think if we can raise our winning percentage to 55 or 60 per cent, I will be happy as a captain,’ he added. Ìý

However, Shanto admitted that their recent performances haven’t been up to the mark.Ìý

Ìý‘Definitely we haven’t played good cricket in recent times. We can, however, make a comeback. We will start a new WTC cycle, and we will play ODIs after a long time too,’ he said.Ìý

‘Everyone in the dressing room has the intention to win for the team. I think this reflects well on the team.’

Bangladesh’s last Test assignment was against Zimbabwe at home, where they drew the series 1-1. However, that series wasn’t part of the WTC.Ìý

‘We didn’t do well against Zimbabwe,’ said the Bangladesh captain whose tenure has recently been extended for another year.Ìý

‘We should have won that series. We have to do very well in this new cycle. We will be playing against strong sides in the 12 Tests in the 2025-27 cycle. We have to go through a lot of challenges. I think if we work hard together, we can get a better result.’

The Bangladesh captain didn’t hide the fact that the recent performances at home have been a point of concern.Ìý

He said, ‘We did terribly in home Tests in the previous WTC cycle. We have to win more at home. We have to do more specific planning at home. Playing well overseas gives us more confidence. If we can combine the both, we can have a better WTC cycle.’Ìý

The left-hander also wanted to make the upcoming tour a memorable one.Ìý

‘I think we have got some good cricketers,’ he said.

Ìý‘We did well in the last cycle, especially away. We have some good memories in Sri Lanka. We won our 100th Test match there. We have an opportunity to do something special in their condition.’

‘I am happy with the Test squad,’ he added. ‘I got the players that I wanted. Regarding the lack of opening options, you will get an idea of what we are thinking once we start the first Test. You will understand the combination.Ìý

‘We also have four fast bowlers and four spinners, so we have tried to balance the bowling attack too. We can go with different combinations.’Ìý

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