AB masterclass puts Rangpur on top

De Villiers ton and Alex Hales's 85 give Rangpur eight-wicket victory over Dhaka Dynamites in front of a packed crowd at Chattogram's Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium.

An AB de Villers masterclass, coupled with Alex Hales's own brand of controlled aggression saw Mashrafe Bin Mortaza's Rangpur Riders overhaul Shakib Al Hasan's Dhaka Dynamites -- who succumbed to their third successive defeat in the tournament -- to climb to the top of the BPL ladder.

Rony Talukdar (52 off 32) and Shakib (12 off 25) had given Dynamites a strong base with a 54-run third-wicket stand but after the duo fell, Rangpur were able to hold back the flow of runs. From 130 for three in 13 overs, Dynamites managed to post 186 runs on the board for the loss of six wickets with only 56 runs coming off the last 7 overs.

Following the exchange, Rangpur got off to the worst of starts as Chris Gayle was scalped by Andre Russel. Rilee Rossouw has been the batting's mainstay so far but this time Russell got him for a duck. The depth in the batting was an issue until de Villiers reminded everyone of his presence.

Since his arrival, Rangpur's luck had changed. Before they had just two wins in six matches, but with today's win – their fourth on the trot, they have won every game since his arrival. Hales was there too. He appropriated steady carnage which swept Dynamites away as he flayed the bowlers around during a 53-ball 85-run knock. The duo competed for runs but de Villiers got ahead in the end with two fours and a six off Rubel Hossain off successive deliveries to complete a masterful 50-ball 100 with Hales giving a helping hand by containing himself with singles. Both AB and Hales remained unbeaten during their 184-run partnership -- the former hitting eight fours and six sixes and the latter's knock laced with eight fours and three sixes, as Rangpur ran out winners by eight wickets.

Scores in brief:

Dhaka Dynamites: 186 for six in 20 overs (Zazai 17, Rony 52, Narine 28, Pollard 37 not out; Reza 2-32)

Rangpur Riders: 189 for two in 18.2 overs (Hales 85 not out, Villiers 100 not out; Russell 2-30)

Result: Rangpur Riders won by eight wickets