Mohammad Ashraful has been replaced as Bangladesh captain by his deputy and fast bowler Mashrafe Mortaza for the tour of the West Indies.

The mercurial Ashraful has faced much criticism for his team's loss to Ireland and their subsequent first-round exit from the World Twenty20 in England this month.

Bangladesh Cricket Board spokesman Mohammed Jalaj Yunus said the decision to remove Ashraful from the captaincy was taken to help the player focus on his batting.

"The board wants to sincerely thank Mohammad Ashraful for his contribution as skipper," Yunus said. "The decision to replace him was taken with the intention of relieving the load on Ashraful so that he can play his natural game.

"We all know his quality and what he is capable of as a batsman and we are confident that without the burden of captaincy his batting would flourish and he would contribute more to the team."