Litton Das named Rangpur Riders captain for remainder of BPL

DHAKA, Jan 16 (BSS): Rangpur Riders on Friday confirmed that Litton Das will lead the side for the remainder of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).
Rangpur ended the Sylhet phase of the tournament on a disappointing note, losing three matches in a row, which delayed their confirmation of a playoffs berth as three other teams secured their places before the Dhaka phase began.
Litton replaces Nurul Hasan Sohan as captain after the latter struggled with form, scoring just 30 runs in six innings across eight matches in this year's BPL. Team head coach Mickey Arthur revealed that Sohan voluntarily stepped down from the leadership role to concentrate on improving his own performance.
Rangpur acquired Litton, the Bangladesh national team's T20 captain, at the players' draft for Tk 7 million. However, he had so far featured only as a batter for the franchise, without wicketkeeping or leadership responsibilities. Litton scored 162 runs in eight matches at a strike rate of 135.
Although Rangpur are yet to mathematically confirm their place in the playoffs, their progression to the knockout stage appears highly likely. Rangpur have won four of their eight matches and currently sit fourth on the points table with eight points. Their nearest rivals, Dhaka Capitals and Noakhali, have each won two of their four matches.
Litton believes the task of securing a playoffs berth will not be difficult.
"I don't think it will be much of a challenge, because right now if we win one match, we will qualify for the playoffs," Litton said on Friday.
"This is very important for us. If we can progress match by match, we can go to the final. If we can play good cricket, the opportunity will come."
CAPTAINCY RESPONSIBILITY
WILL NOT ADD ANY PRESSURE: DAS
"The expectations I have of myself, and the expectations everyone else has, I haven't fully met them yet," Litton told reporters.
"But there has never been a lack of effort. I will try to overcome that and contribute something good for Rangpur," he added.
Downplaying the added responsibility, Litton said captaincy would not affect his batting approach.
"Whenever I have played as a batsman, I have always tried to give 100 per cent," he said.
"I know there will be more responsibility as a captain. But when I bat, I think of myself as a batter first, whose primary job is to score runs."
"Cricket is played on the field. On paper, they are just names," Litton said, adding that performance is the only thing that matters most.
"It depends on how successful you are against the opposition on a given day and how smartly you play your cricket. That decides the course of the game."