Barishal flounder once again as Khulna pick up third win
The 57-run opening partnership between Tamim Iqbal and Parvez Hossain looked promising as Fortune Barishal came in to chase down Gemcon Khulna's 173. However, a batting slump saw the chase fall away as Khulna defeated Barishal by 48 runs to pick up their third win of the tournament.
Captain Tamim Iqbal looked in touch, hitting four fours and a six during his 21-ball 32. Shuvagata Hom did the damage in the eighth over, as both openers fell within the space of five deliveries. Emon (19 off 26) inside edged one onto his stumps while trying to work it to the onside and Tamim looked to clear the ropes but found the man at long off in the last delivery over. Afif Hossain then fell after a costly run out and Barishal never really found momentum after that.
Shakib Al Hasan, brought into the attack, picked up Irfan Shukkur and despite Towhid Hridoy's 27-ball 33, Barishal did not have any notable contribution down the order while losing wickets at regular intervals.
Shuvagata Hom, Hasan Mahmud and Shahidul Islam picked up two wickets each as Barishal were bowled out for 125.
After five matches, Barishal are languishing in fourth with just one win while Khulna's win sees them climb to second in the standings.
Earlier, A dominating knock from youngster Zakir Hasan set the tone for Gemcon Khulna as they posted 173 for six against Fortune Barishal.
Zakir played some telling shots -- the most fascinating of those being the switch hits against the spinners while there were some authoritative punches and cut shots against the pacers – during his 42-ball 62, as Barishal failed to contain him after Taskin Ahmed had picked up Jahurul Islam early.
Together with Imrul Kayes, Zakir put on a 90-run partnership as the score went past 100. The total could have been bigger but Imrul and Zakir fell in back-to-back overs with the latter scoring 37 off 34. Zakir himself fell for a soft dismissal after his 62, laced with 10 fours, while trying to play a Taskin delivery in the air but chipping it to man at cover for a simple catch. Shakib Al Hasan, who came in at number four after opening the innings twice in the last two matches, fell after a 10-ball 14 while trying to clear the long off boundary off spinner Tanvir Islam.
Skipper Mahmudullah Riyad provided the fireworks at the death with his 14-ball 24 before falling to Kamrul Islam, who was the pick of the bowlers with three for 33 in his four overs. Taskin bagged two wickets but was the most expensive among the Barishal bowlers with 43 runs conceded in four overs.
Toss
Tamim Iqbal's Fortune Barishal have won the toss and elected to field against Gemcon Khulna as the Bangabandhu T20 Cup will see a repeat of the opening day fixtures which saw two thrilling last-over finishes.
Barishal are languishing in fourth with just one win in four matches while Gemcon Khulna have two wins from four matches. Khulna's Ariful Haque had snatched the last game away from Barishal when he hit Mehedi Hasan Miraz for four incredible sixes in the final over. Barishal will also be hoping that their batsmen come up with the goods after some poor performances in the earlier matches.
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