The Bangladesh Premier League, BPL, has returned to Sylhet. But Sylhet Strikers, the home team, failed to entertain their massive supporters as they lost the match today against Rangpur Riders.
However, Sylhet Strikers remain at the top of the table despite the defeat. With 12 points from eight matches, Sylhet Strikers are leading the table strongly. On the other hand, Rangpur Riders keep the hope alive for the semifinals by winning today. They are in 4th place with eight points from seven games.
Toss: Nurul Hasan, the captain of Rangpur Riders, won the toss and decided to bowl first.
Rangpur’s bowlers outplayed Sylhet Strikers
Losing the toss, Sylhet Strikers started their batting innings with Najmul Hossain Shanto and Tom Moores. But both openers failed to contribute much to the team. Their partnership lasted for one over only. In the 2nd over, Sylhet Strikers lost their first wicket as Tom Moores departed the crease after scoring two runs.
After that, Najmul Hossain Shanto tried to respond quickly. He hit a six to release some pressure. Unfortunately, Najmul Shanto couldn’t make his innings big. In the 3rd over, Shanto lost his wicket to Mehedi Hasan.
After that, the disaster started for Sylhet Strikers. Three batsmen, Towhid Hridoy, Zakir Hasan, and Mushfiqur Rahim, had gone duck today. Rangpur’s bowlers were on fire against Sylhet Strikers. Because of their aggression, Sylhet Strikers became seven wickets down in 17 runs.
It seemed Sylhet Strikers could become all-out before 30 runs. But Tanzim Hasan Shakib and Mashrafee Bin Mortaza tried hard to handle the situation. Especially, Tanzim Hasan Shakib contributed a lot to the team. He scored 41 runs from 36 balls before losing the wicket to Hasan Mahmud. In addition, captain Mashrafee Bin Mortaza added 21 runs to make the score 92/9 in 20 overs.
Rangpur Riders comfortably chased the target
Chasing the small target, Rangpur Riders didn’t find it hard. Mohammad Naim and Rony Talukdar added 27 runs in the opening partnership. Although Rangpur Riders lost four wickets, Rony Talukdar remained calm between the wickets and kept scoring runs. He added an unbeaten 41 runs for the Riders to win the match.