Johnson Charles made a spectacular 79* to lead the Comilla Victorians to a seven-wicket victory over the Sylhet Strikers in the final of the Bangladesh Premier League at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Thursday.
The Strikers made 175-7 from their 20 overs after the Victorians won the toss and elected to field first.
Mushfiqur Rahim led the way with an unbeaten 74 off 48 balls including five fours and three sixes.
Earlier, opener Najmul Hossain Shanto made a 45-ball 64 including nine fours and a six. Pacer Mustafizur Rahman took 2-21 off his four overs for the Victorians.
The Victorians then needed 19.2 overs to reach their target, with the chase being led by half centuries from Charles and opener Litton Das.
Das made a 39-ball 55 including seven fours and one six to lay the foundation for Charles.
The St. Lucian’s innings lasted 52 balls and included seven fours and five sixes as he, along with captain Moeen Ali who finished 25*, steered the Victorians to their second BPL title in a row and fourth overall.
Charles ended the 2023 BPL as the 11th highest run-scorer with 308 runs in nine matches including one fifty and one hundred. He also hit the most sixes in the tournament with 26.
Scores: Sylhet Strikers 175-7 off 20 overs (Mushfiqur Rahim 74*, Najmul Hossain Shanto 64, Mustafizur Rahman 2-21) Comilla Victorians 176-3 off 19.2 overs (Johnson Charles 79*, Litton Das 55, Rubel Hossain 2-39)
West Indian batsman Johnson Charles produced a magnificent 107 not out to lead the Comilla Victorians to a seven-wicket win over the Khulna Tigers in the Bangladesh Premier League at the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.
The Tigers took first strike after the Victorians won the toss and elected to field first, a decision that looked like the right one when Mahmudul Hasan Joy was dismissed by Pakistani pacer Naseem Shah in the third over with the score on 13.
That wicket brought Tigers skipper Shai Hope to the crease alongside Tamim Iqbal and the pair put on a T20 batting masterclass, blasting the Comilla bowling all over the Sylhet International Cricket Stadium.
A 184-run second wicket partnership between them helped the Tigers reach 197 after 19 overs before Iqbal was finally dismissed five runs short of a magnificent hundred. Iqbal hit 11 fours and four sixes in 61 deliveries.
In the end, Khulna ended their 20 overs on 210-2 with Hope ending not out on 91. His knock came off just 55 balls and included five fours and seven sixes.
The Victorians reply got off to the worst possible start when top batsman Litton Das was forced to retire hurt after being struck on the wrist with the second ball of the innings.
This brought Captain Imrul Kayes to the wicket and he and Mohammad Rizwan put on 22 before Kayes was dismissed for five in the third over.
Rizwan was then joined at the crease by Charles and the two put on a display like that of Hope and Iqbal in the Tigers’ innings.
The pair put on what turned into a match-winning 122-run partnership before Rizwan was dismissed for a 39-ball 73 in the 14th over.
Charles continued on his merry way and brought up a magnificent hundred with a six over cover in the 18th over. His knock came off 53 balls and included five fours and 10 sixes.
He closed proceedings with a six in the 19th over to help the Victorians complete the highest chase in BPL history.
The Victorians now have 12 points from nine games and have secured their spot in the playoffs with a game to spare.
Scores: Khulna Tigers 210-2 in 20 overs (Tamim Iqbal 95, Shai Hope 91*) Comilla Victorians 213-3 in 18.2 overs (Johnson Charles 107*, Mohammad Rizwan 73).
Comilla Victorians are now three-time champions of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) after securing a narrow one-run win over Fortune Barishal in the final in Mirpur on Friday.
In a rematch of the first qualifier which Barishal won by 10 runs, the Victorians won the toss and batted first.
Sunil Narine followed up his 13-ball 50 in the second qualifier with a 23-ball 57 to spur the Victorians to 151-9 off their 20 overs. The Trinidadian’s knock included five fours and five sixes.
Moeen Ali provided good support for Narine with 38 off 32 balls against 2-27 off four overs from Mujeeb Ur Rahman and 2-32 off four overs from Shafiqul Islam.
Scoreboard pressure in a final once again proved to be a major factor as Barishal made a meal of a fairly manageable total.
Shykat Ali (58) and Chris Gayle (33) were the only batsmen to get significant scores for Barishal against 2-15 from four overs from Narine and 2-25 from four overs from Tanvir Islam.
Comilla Victorians previously won BPL in 2015 and 2019.
Man of the Match Sunil Narine scored the fastest 50 in BPL history on Wednesday to propel Comilla Victorians to a seven-wicket victory over Chattogram Challengers and a place in the finals of the tournament where they will face Fortune Barishal.
Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo are into the final of the 2022 Bangladesh Premier League after Fortune Barishal defeated Sunil Narine’s Comilla Victorians by 10 runs in the first qualifier in Mirpur on Monday.
Barishal posted 143-8 off their 20 overs after Comilla captain Imrul Kayes called right at the toss and put them in to bat.
Barishal can attribute their total to opener Munim Shariar who top-scored with a 30-ball 44 that included two fours and four sixes.
Gayle played another uncharacteristically reserved innings to be the second highest scorer for Barishal with 22 off 19 balls with four fours while Bravo added some crucial late runs with 17 off 21 balls with only one six.
Shohidul Islam was the pick of the Comilla bowlers with 3-25 off three overs while Moeen Ali supported well with 4-23 from his four.
A 62-run opening partnership between Liton Das and Mahmudul Hasan Joy had the Victorians thinking they had one foot in the final before it all went downhill.
The partnership ended in the 11th over when Joy was dismissed for 20 before Imrul Kayes was also walking back just one over later for just five.
That 12th over, bowled by Shafiqul Islam, proved to be the most important of the innings as he also dismissed Das for 38 to leave the Victorians 68-3 and in a spot of bother.
None of the other batsmen seemed to find any rhythm at the crease with Faf Du Plessis (21), Moeen Ali (22), and Sunil Narine (17) the only remaining batsmen to reach double figures.
The Victorians were eventually restricted to 133-7 off their 20 overs thanks to Shafiqul’s crucial 2-16 off four overs.
Mujeeb Ur Rahman (2-33 from four overs) and Mehedi Hasan Rana (2-15 from three overs) bowled well in support while Dwayne Bravo also had 1-26 from his four overs.
Fortune Barishal will now advance to the final which will be played on Friday while Comilla will have another opportunity to get there when they play the Chattogram Challengers in the second qualifier on Wednesday.
Forty-eight hours after Andre Fletcher scored an unbeaten 101 to get Khulna Tigers into the playoffs of the Bangladesh Premier League, his unbeaten 80 was not enough to prevent them from getting knocked out, as they lost by seven runs to Chattogram Challengers.
Needing 16 from the final over bowled by Mehidy Hasan Miraz in pursuit of 190, Khulna Tigers only managed to eight runs. Miraz bowled a yorker-filled over that yielded a boundary by Fletcher and four singles before taking the wicket of Thisara Perera for three with the last ball of the match.
The Grenadian, who hit six fours and four sixes in his 58-ball knock that threatened to lead his side to another remarkable victory, got support from Mushfiqur Rahim, who scored 43 from 29 balls. Together they put on 64 for the third wicket that took the score from 43-2 after Mahedi Hasan and Soumya Sarkar were dismissed for, two and one, respectively.
Fletcher and Yasir Ali then put together a stand of 65 for the fourth wicket. Yasir hit two fours and four sixes in his 24-ball 45 that took Khulna Tigers within touching distance of the target with nine balls remaining.
Miraz finished with 2-40.
Earlier, it was Chadwick Walton’s unbeaten 89 that helped Chattogram Challengers to their score of 189-5.
The Jamaican hit seven fours and seven sixes in his 44-ball knock that rescued Chattogram Challengers from a precarious 65-4 in the 10th over. Other useful contributions came from Walton’s compatriot Kennar Lewis, who opened the batting with an uncharacteristically sedate 39 from 32 balls.
Miraz scored 36 from 30 late in the innings that helped Walton take Chattogram Challengers to their winning score.
Andre Fletcher scored an unbeaten 100 to lead Khulna Tigers to a nine-wicket victory over Comilla Victorians on Saturday and a place in the play-offs of the Bangladesh Premier League.
West Indies T20 star Chris Gayle stroked an unbeaten half-century and was backed up by stingy death bowling from Dwayne Bravo as Fortune Barishal eased to a 12-run win over Sylhet Sunrisers in the Bangladesh Premier League on Tuesday.
Gayle’s 51 from 45 balls provided the backbone for Fortune, who posted a formidable 199 for 4 after being sent in to bat. The team was off to a solid start after the big left-hander formed part of an opening stand with Munim Shahriar to put 72 on the board. The partnership was broken after Shahriar was bowled by Sohag Gazi for 51.
Wicketkeeper Nurul Hasan then joined Gayle at the crease but was dismissed after just four balls for 2. Barishal captain Shakib Al Hasan then joined the West Indian to push the score along, adding 38 from just 19 balls before being caught off Alauddin Babu.
Towhid Hridoy added 10 before Bravo joined Gayle at the crease and added an unbeaten 34 off 13, as the two put on 42 for the last wicket.
In response, the Sunrisers made a game of the total after opener Collin Ingram put on a brilliant 90 from 49. Bravo, however, continued to feature prominently throughout the match, claiming a catch at long-on off Najmul Hossain Shanto to dismiss Ingram and ending the late innings resistance of Mosaddek Hossain, who had 34 from 21, in the final over. Bravo successfully defended 24 for the last over.
The win was the 6th for Barishal who top the table with 13 points.
West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell took three wickets to help Minister Group Dhaka defeat Comilla Victorians in the Bangladesh Premier League today in Chattogram.
After Comilla won the toss and elected to field first, a half-century from Dhaka captain Mahmudullah, as well as 46 from Tamim Iqbal, helped Minister Group Dhaka put up a score of 181-6 off their 20 overs.
Russell contributed 11 off seven balls late in the innings.
In Comilla Victorians chase, Mahudul Hasan Joy (46) and captain Imrul Kayes (28) tried to make a fight of it. However, Russell’s 3-17, from 2.3 overs, alongside two wickets each from Qais Ahmed and Ebadot Hossain meant that the Victorians would be bowled out for just 131, losing the match by 50 runs.
Comilla Victorians and Minister Group Dhaka are now second and third in the table, respectively, with six points each.
A crucial 45 from Windies T20 star, Chris Gayle, and brilliant death bowling from Mehedi Hasan Rana led Fortune Barisal to their second win of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), over Khulna Tigers, on Saturday.
Sent in to bat, Barishal struggled to put partnerships together but managed to get to 141 on the back of Gayle’s solid innings. The West Indian was deployed at the top of the order where he struck six fours and two sixes in amassing his total.
He was, however, caught off Thisara Perera just five runs shy of a maiden fifty in this year’s BPL.
In response, Khulna battled back from early trouble, with Mushfiqur Rahim and Yasir Ali adding a crucial 46 runs for the fifth wicket.
In fact, Khulna seemed well on their way to a win, needing just 20 runs from the second to last over, but left-arm pace bowler Rana claimed three wickets, including that of dangerman Rahim. Rana finished with career-best figures of 4 for 17. In support, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Jake Lintott took two wickets apiece. Shafiqul Islam and Shakib Al Hasan also took one each.
Barishal took the last five Khulna wickets for 16 runs in the space of 16 deliveries.
Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo’s Fortune Barishal suffered their second straight loss, this time at the hands of the Comilla Victorians, as action in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) continued Tuesday in Mirpur.
After winning the toss and electing to field first, Fortune Barishal thought they held the Victorians to a manageable target when they restricted them to 158-7 off their 20 overs.
Bangladesh test opener Mahmudul Hasan Joy was the main scorer for the Victorians with 48, while Afghanistan all-rounder Karim Janat supported well with 29.
Bravo was the pick of the Barishal bowlers with 3-30 off his four overs, while captain Shakib Al Hasan took 2-25 off his four.
Barishal’s reply never truly got out of first gear with only three batsmen reaching double figures on their way to being bowled out for just 95 in 17.3 overs, losing by 63 runs.
Najmul Hosain Shanto (36), Towhid Hridoy (19), and Nurul Hasan (17) were the only batsmen to pass 10.
Gayle, who batted at number five, could only manage seven before he was dismissed by man-of-the-match, Nahidul Islam.
Islam was the pick of the bowlers for Comilla with a miserly 3-5 off four overs, while Tanvir Islam, Janat, and Shohidul Islam all took two wickets each.
Comilla Victorians now have two wins from two games to sit at the top of the table while Fortune Barishal sits third with one win and two losses.
Veteran all-rounder Dwyane Bravo will join fellow West Indian Chris Gayle at Fortune Barishal for the upcoming Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) after replacing Sri Lanka's Danushka Gunathilaka.
Gunathilaka was forced to pull out of the tournament after he failed to receive a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC).
In addition to Gayle, who will be playing for the franchise for the third time, the franchise has also added another two Caribbean players. Pace bowlers Alzarri Joseph and Obed Mccoy will also be joining the team.
The 38-year-old Bravo, who retired from international cricket following the ICC T20 World Cup earlier this year, has previously represented the Chittagong Kings, Comilla Victorians, and Dhaka Dynamites in the BPL.
The competition, which is scheduled to bowl off on January 21, will be played across three cities and will feature 6 teams.
West Indies T20 batsman Chris Gayle will join Fortune Barishal for the upcoming season of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).
The 42-year-old will be returning to Barishal having last represented the Rangpur Riders in 2018. The stint will be the left-handers third at the franchise who were called the Barishal Burners when he began taking part in the competition in 2012. Gayle also played for the franchise in 2015 when they were known as the Bulls. He represented the Chittagong Vikings at the 2016 edition.
The veteran batsman will be joined at the franchise by Shakib Al Hasan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and compatriot, pace bowler Alzarri Joseph.
In the meantime, spinner Sunil Narine will suit up for Cumilla Victorians alongside pace bowler O’Shane Thomas, while the trio of Kennar Lewis, Chadwick Walton, and Rayad Emrit will represent the Chattogram Challengers.
Pace bowler Kesrick Williams will represent the Sylhet Sunrisers.
The competition will take place between Jan 21 – Feb 18.
Full BPL squads
Khulna Tigers: Mushfiqur Rahim, Thisara Perera, Naveen Ul Huq, Bhanuka Rajapakse, Soumya Sarkar, Seekugge Prasanna, Sikandar Raza, Farhad Reza, Rony Talukdar, Khaled Ahmed, Jaker Ali Anik, Nabil Samad
Chattogram Challengers: Nasum Ahmed, Benny Howell, Kennar Lewis, Afif Hossain, Chadwick Walton, Rayad Emrit, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Rejaur Rahman, Sabbir Rahman, Mrittunjoy Chowdhury, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Akbar Ali, Naeem Islam,
Dhaka: Mahmudullah, Tamim Iqbal, Rubel Hossain, Mashrafe Mortaza, Mohammad Shahzad, Mohammad Naim, Arafat Sunny, Imranuzzaman, Shafiul Islam, Jahurul Islam, Shamsur Rahman, Ebadat Hossain.
Fortune Barishal: Shakib Al Hasan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Danushka Gunathilaka, Chris Gayle, Nurul Hasan, Obed McCoy, Alzarri Joseph, Towhid Hridoy, Ziaur Rahman, Shafiqul Islam, Saikat Ali, Niroshan Dickwella, Nayeem Hasan, Taijul Islam, Sarwar Hossain, Irfan Sukkur,
Cumilla Victorians: Mustafizur Rahman, Faf du Plessis, Sunil Narine, Moeen Ali, Liton Das, Shohidul Islam, Kusal Mendis, Oshane Thomas, Ariful Haque, Nahidul Islam, Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Sumon Khan, Mominul Haque, Mahidul Islam, Parvez Hossain, Abu Hider
Sylhet Sunrisers: Taskin Ahmed, Dinesh Chandimal, Kesrick Williams, Colin Alexander, Mosaddek Hossain, Mohammad Mithun, Ravi Bopara, Angelo Perera, Anamul Haque, Sohag Gazi, Alok Kapali, Muktar Ali, Siraj Ahmed, Mizanur Rahman, Nadif Chowdhury, Jubair Hossain, Shafiul Hayat, Sunzamul Islam
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