Abahani’s nail-biting win
High voltage drama with a nail-biting last over finish was witnessed, and then there was the second hundred of the league which eventually went in vain as the super league stage of the Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier League T20 started to step towards the tournament's climax.
Mushfiqur Rahim's Abahani registered a hard fought one-wicket win over Mahmudullah Riyad's Gazi Group Cricketers in an eventful encounter in the day's second fixture at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur yesterday.
Gazi were bundled out for 130 in 19.1 overs but the bowlers bounced back well as Abahani needed nine runs off the last over with two wickets in hand.
In the final over delivered by left arm spinner Nasum Ahmed, Tanzim Ahmed took a single off the first ball after which Mehedi Hasan Rana struck a boundary. Rana was then run-out in the next ball while trying to take a double followed by Arafat Sunny returning the strike to Tanzim immediately.
Needing two off the last two balls, the youngster Tanzim hit the winning strike, with a mishit towards extra cover region resulting in two runs, and thus Abahani registered a thrilling win in the end.
Left hander Najmul Hossain Shanto's fifty and Liton Das's 22 helped set the tone at chasing a modest target but Abahani kept losing wickets at regular intervals.
Gazi's pacer Mukidul Islam picked up three wickets while Mahmudullah and Mahedi took two each but the poor fielding contributed to their misery.
Earlier, after being sent to bat, Soumya Sarkar top-scored with thirty for Gazi while on the other side, Mohammad Saifuddin remained instrumental and picked up four wickets, conceding a miserly 18 from his four overs.
In the day's relegation fixture, Hasanuzzaman's century was not enough for Partex Sporting to avoid the 23-run defeat over Old DOHS who posted 199 for 3 by riding on Rakin Ahmed's blistering unbeaten 92 off 58 balls.
Right-hander Hasanuzzaman was dismissed on 105 off 52 balls as Partex were restricted on 178 for 8 in 20 overs.
In the other super league encounter, Prime Doleshwar registered a comfortable six-wicket win over Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club, courtesy of Saif Hasan's fifty. Sheikh Jamal managed to score 123 for 9 in 20 overs after being sent to bat where seamer Rejaur Rahman bagged three wickets for Doleshwar.