Zazai hounds Rajshahi Kings

After the Bangladesh Premier League's sixth edition started with a low-scoring encounter between Rangpur Riders and Chittagong Vikings, yesterday's second match started in highly contrasting fashion as Dhaka Dynamites opener Hazratullah Zazai unleashed the beast and helped his side to a whopping 83-run win over Rajshahi Kings at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur.

However, both opening day matches shared a similarity as two foreign players -- Chittagong's Robbie Frylink and Dhaka's Zazai -- shone on the day. While South African Frylink's figures of four wickets for 14 runs earned him the match award in the first match, Afghanistan's Zazai was the next one to land the award for his impressive 41-ball 78 with four fours and seven sixes, which took Dhaka to a strong 189 for five. Chittagong's reply was a tame one as they were bundled out for 106 in just 18.2 overs.

Dhaka got off to a flying start after being sent in to bat, courtesy of a 116-run opening stand between Zazai and WIndies' Sunil Narine. The left-handed Zazai made his BPL debut memorable and was a treat to watch throughout.

Zazai spoke after the match and revealed the secret of his power hitting.

"I always believe in myself. Whenever I practice, I practise to hit sixes. Even though the wicket is tough as I am in form I was able to hit sixes," said Zazai.

Rajshahi pulled things back in the middle as they picked up three quick wickets within the span of six overs that cost just 12 runs. It looked like Rajshahi could get back in the game but some sloppy fielding let Dhaka end on a high note. Rajshahi's young skipper Mehedi Hasan Miraz also marked the missed opportunities on the field as reasons for their downfall.

"The way they [Dhaka Dynamites] started it became tough for us at the beginning as they scored a lot of runs at the top. But I think if we had not missed chances then we could have conceded 10 or 20 runs less," said Mehedi at the post-match press conference.

Coming in to chase a challenging total, Rajshahi suffered a batting collapse as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals before finally being bundled.  Opener Mohammad Hafeez remained the top scorer for Rajshahi as he scored 29 runs off 28 balls while only three other batsmen managed double-figure scores.  Dhaka's Rubel Hossain was the pick of their bowlers, ending with magnificent figures of three for seven runs in his three-over spell.

SCORES IN BRIEF

DHAKA DYNAMITES v RAJSHAHI KINGS

DHAKA: 189 for 5 (Zazai 78, Shuvagata 38, Narine 38; Arafat 2-23, Hafeez 1-15)

RAJSHAHI: 106 (Hafeez 29, Arafat 18; Rubel 3-7, Mohor 2-24, Russell 1-12)

Result: Dhaka won by 83 runs.

Player-of-the-match: Hazratullah Zazai.