Dhaka off the mark
Mahmudullah Riyad's Minister Group Dhaka, touted as one of the favourites to win the tournament, lost their first two matches but were able to grind through a difficult match. All of their bowlers chipped in to restrict title aspirants Fortune Barishal to a lowly total. Mahmudullah played a captain's knock, ably supported by Shuvagata Hom's resilient 29, to get the team out of trouble before Andre Russell's carnage late on saw Dhaka notch their first win of the tournament.
Shafiqul shows promise
Left-arm seamer Shafiqul Islam had impressed in domestic tournaments such as the Dhaka Premier and the National Cricket League. The 24-year-old did not disappoint after being given an opportunity by Barishal to play his first-ever BPL match.
While the surface did not provide seam movement, Shafiqul used the conditions well to get the ball to talk. An outswinger beat Tamim Iqbal in the first over and made the left-hander ponder over the length and he went down the pitch next delivery only to get castled for a duck. Then the young pacer got one to tail in to Mohammad Shahzad, as the ball swung in air before disturbing the off stump. Barishal head coach Khaled Mahmud was impressed.
"I'm very impressed with that boy. Last year when I was with Khulna, he was there and I have seen him improve a lot over the last five-six years. He did well at the nets and I wanted to play him in the first match but due to the combination it didn't happen. He bowled really well but a long way to go for him. A good prospect for Bangladesh cricket in the future," Mahmud said.
Shakib in 400-wicket club
Bangladesh's star performer Shakib Al Hasan scaled yet another record, becoming only the fifth bowler in history to bag 400 T20 wickets, only behind his Fortune Barishal teammate Dwayne Bravo, South Africa's Imran Tahir, Windies T20 star Sunil Narine and Afghan leggie Rashid Khan.
Shakib notched his 400th scalp by picking up the wicket of his counterpart Mahmudullah Riyad. The dismissal came too late for Shakib and Barishal as Mahmudullah's run-a-ball 47 had already seen the scores levelled before Dhaka notched a four-wicket win. The all-rounder accomplished the feat in 352 matches, at an average of 21.17 and a strike rate of 18.6.
Shuvo's unwanted record
The match between Chattogram Challengers and Khulna Tigers saw the latter's left-arm spinner Sohrawordi Shuvo attain an unwanted record, conceding the most expensive first over of an innings in a BPL match. Chattogram's Kennar Lewis and Will Jacks tore into the spinner, picking up two fours and two sixes in a 23-run over. The record previously belonged to Kamrul Islam Rabbi, who conceded 22 in a BPL game in 2019 while playing for Rajshahi Kings against Chittagong Vikings.
Chattogram went on to post 190 for seven before restricting Khulna to 165 for nine for a 25-run victory.