Four tons on Day One
The first day of the fourth round of the National Cricket League witnessed four centurions; this despite the fact that Dhaka's strong batting line-up is yet to open their account. Except for the clash between Khulna and Rajshahi at Mirpur, centuries were scored at Fatullah and the BKSP.
It was important for Sylhet to make a good start against league leaders Dhaka and that's exactly what former national players Rajin Saleh and Alok Kapali delivered. They each scored a 118 and rescued Sylhet from a precarious 52 for 3. The pair shared a 239-run stand for the fourth wicket yesterday and helped Sylhet finish at a strong position at the end of day one. Both the players scored 14 boundaries each. While Rajin hit 12 fours two sixes, Alok hit 14 fours.
Liton Kumar was the hero of the day at the BKSP. The batsman who has been in sublime form ever since the Dhaka Premier League season, scored a career-high 175 for Rangpur and took his side to a relatively strong 268 for 4 at the end of the day against Barisal. He hit 24 fours and four sixes in his three-hour stay. While the innings was long, there was no shortage of entertainment as Liton kept milking the boundaries in good time.
At the other ground at the BKSP, Marshall Ayub finally hit form with an unbeaten 111 against Chittagong. The Dhaka Metro skipper failed to get a start in the first three rounds of the league and was looking grim. The century yesterday, which featured 16 boundaries, is likely to boost the player's confidence who was a part of Bangladesh's last Test squad against Zimbabwe. While Marshall fought for Metro, Nur Hossain led their opponents bowling attack with a five wicket haul to subdue Marshall's teammates.
The only venue which did not feature any centuries was Mirpur where Khulna took on Rajshahi. After being put into bat, a number of Khulna's batsman got starts but failed to continue. While they shared a good opening stand worth 84, the team lost frequent wickets. At the end of the day Tushar Imran remained not out on 63 and was at the crease with Ziaur Rahman who was unbeaten on 21. They posted 256 for 5.
Scores in brief
SYLHET: 291 for 3 (Rajin 118 not out, Alok 118 not out; Shahadat 2-64) v Dhaka
RANGPUR: 268 for 4 (Liton 175; Nasum 2-85, Shohag 1-56) v Barisal
DHAKA METRO: 290 for 6 (Marshall 111 not out; Nur 5-80) v Chittagong
KHULNA: 256 for 5 (Tushar 63 not out, Mehedi 51; Forhad 2-39, Saqlain 2-55) v Rajshahi
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