New Delhi, Feb 11 : The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has named veteran coach Sarwar Imran as the new head coach of the national women's team, replacing Hashan Tillakaratne, who vacated the position recently.

BCB president Faruque confirmed the appointment on Tuesday, reinforcing his commitment to providing homegrown coaches with opportunities at the highest level.

'We have decided to appoint Imran as our national women's team head coach after the post went vacant following the departure of Hashan. When I took over, I promised to give local coaches a platform in the national setup. This appointment is part of that pledge. If we don't entrust them with responsibility, how can we assess their capabilities?," Faruque was quoted by Cricbuzz.

Imran previously served as the head coach of the men's national team when they made their Test debut against India in 2000. He has also played a key role in developing young cricketers over the years. Most recently, he was the head coach of the Bangladesh U-19 women's team during the ICC U-19 Women's T20 World Cup in Malaysia.

Now, he takes charge of the senior women's team, which is preparing for a crucial challenge'the ICC Women's World Cup Qualifiers. Imran has already started working with the team as they prepare for the eight-team ICC Women's World Cup qualifying event after failing to secure direct entry into the tournament.

Bangladesh narrowly missed out on direct qualification for the 2025 Women's ODI World Cup, finishing level on 21 points with New Zealand in the ICC Women's Championship table. However, New Zealand secured the final automatic spot due to their superior number of wins (9 to Bangladesh's 8).

The turning point came when Bangladesh suffered an eight-wicket defeat against West Indies in the series decider, pushing them into the qualifiers.

Now, Bangladesh must compete in an eight-team qualifying tournament alongside West Indies, Pakistan, Ireland, Scotland, and Thailand. Only the top two teams will advance to the main event, which is scheduled to be held in India later this year.

/IANS