Saif Sporting Club and Dhaka Mohammedan SC reached the semifinals of the Bashundhara Group Federation Cup Football Tournament ’21 eliminating their rivals in the quarter-finals at the Bir Shreshta Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur on Sunday. The 10-time champions Dhaka Mohammedan SC will play Saif SC in the first semifinal on January 6. Dhaka Mohammedan SC eliminated Chittagong Abahani Limited by 2-1 goals in the day’s first quarterfinal Sunday afternoon. Also read: Fed Cup Football: Mohammedan reach semifinal eliminating Ctg Abahani Mohammedan SC took the lead in the 65th minute with a gifted goal when Abahani midfielder Arafat Hossen sent the ball to his own net (1-0). Defender Emon Khan widened the Black and Whites margin in the 74th minute (2-0). Nigerian forward Ebimobowei Thankgod reduced the margin for the former finalists Chittagong Abahani in the 90th minute of the match (2-1). In the day’s 2nd quarterfinal, Saif SC defeated Swadhinata KS by 2-0 goals at the same venue Sunday evening Midfielder Rahim Uddin put Saif SC ahead in the 42nd minute (1-0) while another medio Meraj Hossain Opi doubled the Saif SC margin in the 72nd minute (2-0). Also read: Fed Cup Football: Sheikh Russel KC emerge group champions to reach quarterfinal in goal feast The 3rd quarterfinal between Sheikh Russel KC and Rahmatganj MFS and the 4th quarterfinal between Sheikh Jamal DC and Dhaka Abahani Ltd will be held on Monday at the same venue.

Dhaka Mohammedan SC reached the semifinal of the Bashundhara Group Federation Cup Football Tournament ’21 eliminating Chittagong Abahani Limited by 2-1 goals in the first quarter-final at the Bir Shreshta Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in Kamalapur on Sunday. Mohammedan SC took the lead in the 65th minute with a gifted goal when Abahani midfielder Arafat Hossen sent the ball to his own net (1-0). Defender Emon Khan widened the Black and Whites margin in the 74th minute (2-0). Also read: Fed Cup Football: Sheikh Russel KC emerge group champions to reach quarterfinal in goal feast Nigerian forward Ebimobowei Thankgod reduced the margin for the former finalists Chittagong Abahani in the 90th minute of the match (2-1). The 10th time champions Dhaka Mohammedan SC will play the first semifinal on January 6 against the winners of Saif SC and Swadhinata KS, who will play each other in the 2nd quarterfinal Sunday night at the same venue. The 3rd quarterfinal between Sheikh Russel KC and Rahmatganj MFS and the 4th quarterfinal between Sheikh Jamal DC and Dhaka Abahani Ltd will be held on Monday at the same venue. Also read: Fed Cup Football: Ctg Abahani assure quarterfinals beating Police 2-0

Walton Central Zone's Hasan Murad bagged four wickets for 70 runs against BCB South Zone at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on the opening day of the final of the Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL) Sunday. Winning the toss, Central Zone asked South to bat first, who posted 261 runs for five wickets in 80 overs at stumps, riding on Anamul Haque Bijoy and Pinak Ghosh. Read:NZ vs BAN 1st Test 2021: Bangladesh Sustains Hope Till the End of Day 2 Anamul and Pinak put on a 137-run opening stand, hitting a fifty each. Hasan broke the partnership in the 52nd over. After Pinak, the left-arm spinner also removed Anamul, Towhid Hridoy and Mahedi Hasan – all of whom had a good run of form in this season of the BCL. At the end of day, South Zone's Zakir Hasan and captain Farhad Reza remained unbeaten on 44 and 46.

Seven-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi is among four players in the Paris Saint-Germain squad to have tested positive for the coronavirus ahead of the team's French Cup game on Monday night. PSG added that one staff member also had COVID-19 in a statement on Saturday night. None of them were named at that point, but in a further statement on the team's medical news Sunday the club named Messi, left back Juan Bernat, backup goalie Sergio Rico and 19-year-old midfielder Nathan Bitumazala. Read: Champions League 2021-2022: Will Messi and Ronaldo meet in the Round of 16? PSG is playing at third-tier Vannes. Last year's runner-up Monaco was in action later Sunday at second-tier Quevilly-Rouen in one of 13 games scheduled for the day as sides bid to reach the last 16. Monaco said Saturday that seven players had COVID-19 but none showed any worrying signs and are isolating.

Bangladesh are in a good position in the first Test match against New Zealand at the end of day two. Bangladesh require 154 runs to surpass New Zealand's first-innings total, and they still have eight wickets in hand. Bangladesh will not lose by an innings in this match, which is a notable achievement in only two days. Bangladesh has displayed a few more encouraging signs in this series-opening Test. Let's take a look at the current scenario of the NZ vs BAN 1st Test 2021. Match Scenario: New Zealand vs Bangladesh 1st Test 2021 Bangladesh skipper Mominul Haque chose to bat first in the first session to take advantage of the early moisture. Pacers bowled superbly in the very first session of the match and dominated the contest for the first two days. The current scenario of the NZ vs BAN 1st Test 2021 is discussed in this article. New Zealand’s First Innings  New Zealand were asked to bat first, and they were all out for 328 runs in the first session of day 2. Will Young and Devon Conway put on a 138-run partnership for the second wicket after losing Captain Tom Latham in the fourth over of the innings. Read BPL 2022: Five Promising Young Players to Watch  They were cautious at the start of the innings and appeared to be in great shape in the middle. Bangladesh needed a wicket urgently to break the partnership. Finally, they made a breakthrough in the second session. Will Young (52) was run out by Najmul Hossain in the 49th over of the contest. On the other hand, Devon Conway (122) was dismissed after completing his century in the third session. Bangladesh's captain Mominul Haque got his wicket. New Zealand had a total of 258/5 at the end of day 1. Bangladesh off-spinner Mehidy Hasan Miraz showed a lot of aggression in the opening session of day 2. He took three wickets and assisted Bangladesh in bowling out New Zealand in the opening session. On the other hand, Shoriful Islam was Bangladesh's most inspirational bowler in the first innings. He took three wickets for 69 runs in 26 overs. Read ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2022: SWOT Analysis of Bangladesh Team Bangladesh’s Ongoing First Innings Bangladesh needed to get off to a solid start in order to threaten New Zealand's first innings total. They got off to a good start owing to a 43-run first-wicket partnership between Shadman Islam and Mahmudul Hasan. Wagner dismissed Shadman Islam (22) in the 19th over of the innings. However, a 104-run partnership between Mahmudul Hasan (70*) and Najmul Hossain (64) in the first innings has provided Bangladesh with a good foundation. Najmul was a little more aggressive and confident than his partner in the middle, but he was finally dismissed by Wagner. After Najmul's departure, opener Mahmudul Hasan and Captain Mominul Haque (8*) have put up an undefeated 28-run stand. Bangladesh ended day two with 175/2, 153 runs behind New Zealand's first innings total. Read ICC U19 World Cup 2022 Fixtures: Bangladesh to Face England in Group Phase Bangladesh should aim to bat for the entire third day in order to maintain its dominance in the game. Therefore, Bangladesh will have to put in a lot of effort in the remaining days of the contest. Verdict Bangladesh have yet to win a match in New Zealand and beating them will be extremely difficult for the current Tigers’ Test side in the ongoing series. Bangladesh are now in a strong position in the ongoing NZ vs BAN 1st Test 2021, but there is no certainty that they would win or tie. Bangladesh have a habit of losing control of a contest after a good start. Therefore, Bangladesh's aim will be to push the match to the fifth day and keep the players' performances all throughout the contest. Read BPL 2022: SWOT Analysis of all Six Teams 

The Bangladesh Premier League will begin on January 21 after a two-year break and the competition will enter its eighth season. The most recent Bangladesh Premier League took place in 2019.  This year's edition of the franchise-based T20 cricket league will include six teams. According to the BCB, the huge event would take place at three cricket venues around the country. The upcoming championship will feature some fresh young talented cricketers. Take a look at the five young players to watch out for in the BPL 2022. Young Players to Watch in BPL 2022  It's a challenging task to pick the top five players from a bunch of young, promising cricketers. Here are the five cricketers who can showcase their abilities at the upcoming tournament. Akbar Ali (Chattogram Challengers)  T20 M: 29 | Runs: 337 | HS: 45* | Ave: 21.06 | SR: 126.69 | 50s: 0 Akbar Ali captained Bangladesh's U19 World Cup-winning team in 2020. Many cricket analysts predict that Bangladesh's future captain will be Akbar Ali. He is a wicket-keeper batter. This right-hander is a hard-hitting batter who can accelerate the run rate in the death overs. Akbar will play for Chattogram Challengers in the eighth season of the BPL. He will almost certainly be a regular starter for Chattogram. Therefore, Akbar Ali will have a fantastic opportunity to prove his capabilities. The selectors are also looking forward to seeing Akbar thrive in the BPL 2020. Read: It’s tough to play all formats together: Shakib Shamim Hossain (Chattogram Challengers) T20 M: 40 | Runs: 560 | HS: 52* | Ave: 19.31 | SR: 136.91 | 50s: 1    Shamim Hossain was a member of the Bangladesh U19 World Cup-winning team. He is regarded as one of Bangladesh's most promising young cricketers. Shamim has been a part of the Bangladesh T20 setup since the Zimbabwe trip in 2021. This left-handed power batter will be keen to show his true potential for his Chattogram Challengers team in the upcoming BPL 2020. Shamim's performance in the competition will have a significant impact on Chattogram's team. Read ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2022: SWOT Analysis of Bangladesh Team Parvez Hossain Emon (Cumilla Victorians) T20 M: 24 | Runs: 563 | HS: 100* | Ave: 24.47 | SR: 123.73 | 50s: 2 The U19 World Cup-winning opener Parvez Hossain Emon holds the record for the fastest T20 century by a Bangladeshi player (42 balls). He set the record during a match in the Bangabandhu T20 Cup in 2020. Parvez will play for Cumilla in the BPL this season, and he will most certainly be one of their openers. Parvez was a member of Bangladesh's T20I team against Pakistan. However, he did not appear in any of the matches. The selectors will keep a close eye on him during the competition. Therefore, the upcoming competition will surely put the left-handed top-order batter under pressure, which he must embrace as a challenge. Read BPL 2022: SWOT Analysis of all Six Teams Towhid Hridoy (Fortune Barishal) T20 M: 25 | Runs: 587 | HS: 66* | Ave: 30.89 | SR: 116 | 50s: 3 Towhid Hridoy is a young cricketer who came through the U19 system. In domestic T20 cricket, he already has a decent track record. Towhid will play for Barishal in the forthcoming competition. He and Najmul Hossain Shanto will most likely open the innings for Fortune Barishal. As one of Bangladesh cricket's emerging prospects, this will be an excellent opportunity for him to demonstrate his genuine potential to the selectors. Read: Shakib Al Hasan's next stop: Bank director Rejaur Rahman Raja (Chattogram Challengers)  T20 M: 16 | Wkts: 15 | BBI: 3/25 | Ave: 21.33 | Econ: 6.48 | SR: 19.7    22 years old right-arm medium pacer Rezaur Rahman Raja has been picked in the Bangladesh Test team for the two-match series against Pakistan. Despite being on the team, he did not appear in any of the matches. Raja will play for Chattogram Challengers in the upcoming BPL 2022. Rezaur Rahman Raja is one of the Challengers' talented cricketers. National selectors and fans will closely monitor his fast bowling during the competition. Raja will do all in his power to showcase his abilities to everyone at the event.  Read ICC U19 World Cup 2022 Fixtures: Bangladesh to Face England in Group Phase Bottom Line The main objective of the T20 format Bangladesh Premier League is to develop new, promising players. In other words, the Bangladesh Premier League is an excellent platform for young, talented cricketers to improve their skills. The next generation's rising stars are looking forward to displaying their abilities through this competition. This time will be no different. Aside from the players mentioned above, there are a number of talented cricketers who can regularly perform in the upcoming event. Overall, the young cricketers are likely to play a key role in the BPL 2022 this year. Read NZ vs BAN Test Series 2022: Five Bangladesh Players to keep an eye on

Najmul Hossain Shanto, and Mahmudul Hasan Joy hit a fifty each in the ongoing first Test against New Zealand at Mount Maunganui.  At the end of day two, Bangladesh were batting at 175 for two with Joy and captain Mominul Haque remained  unbeaten for 70 and eight respectively. Joy, who got his Test captain in the second Test against Pakistan at home, scored only six in his debut. But coming into bat for the third time in Tests, he notched up his maiden fifty.  Along the way of scoring 70, Joy played 211 balls— the highest by any Bangladeshi openers in New Zealand.  Read Bangladesh Cricket in 2021: Performance Analysis by Series Joy and Shadman Islam added 43 in the opening stand. Shadman fell for 22 off 55 balls, but Joy remained firm at the other end of the wicket. In the second wicket stand, Joy and number three Shanto added 104 runs on the board.  The pair of Joy and Shanto was going well until Neil Wagner bagged his second wicket and removed Shanto. It was an outswinger delivery from Wagner after a barrage of short balls. Shanto’s foot movement was disappointing. He only sent a catch to Will Young.  Joy and Mominul played the last nine overs of the day without any loss.  Joy got a life at 20, but later, he took the advantage and did not give any chance to the hosts’ bowlers.  Earlier, Bangladesh scalped the last five wickets of the hosts inside 70 runs on top of their overnight total of 258 for five. The hosts were ended up at 328 in their first innings of this Test after being sent to bat first losing the toss.  Read Traditional folk sports of rural Bangladesh: A look back Devon Conway was the highest runs getter for the hosts with his well-composed 122 while Henry Nicholls scored 75 and opener Will Young put 52 on the board.  Mehidy Hasan Miraz led the bowlers on the second day morning. The right-arm spinner bagged three wickets in the first session of the day, while Mominul and Shoriful scalped one each.  Mehidy and Shorfiul ended up taking three wickets each. It was the best bowling for Shorfiul in Tests. He previously played one Test against Sri Lanka.  Restricting the hosts under 350 runs in the first innings, came as a good chance for Bangladesh to end this Test on high.  But as the first step, the Tigers now need to score 153 runs more to pass the first innings total of New Zealand.    

The Sheikh Kamal 45th National Athletics Championship’ 2021, marking the birth centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the silver jubilee  of the country’s Independence, begins on Monday (January 3) at Bangladesh Army Stadium in Banani here. State Minister for Social Welfare M Ashraf Ali Khan Khasru will inaugurate the 3-day meet at 3 pm Monday. Secretary General of Bangladesh Olympics Association Syed Shaheed Reza will be the special guest on the occasion. General Secretary of Bangladesh Athletics Federation Advocate Abdur Rokib Montu disclosed the details of the meet at a press conference at the conference room of Bangabandhu National Stadium here on Saturday.  Some 400 men’s and women’s athletes from 64 districts, eight divisions, universities, education boards, BKSP, BJMC and other affiliated organizations will participate in the 40-event national meet—22 for men’s and 18 for the women’s.    Four new events for the women’s –-5000-meter, 10,000-meter runs, 400 meter hurdles and triple jump-- are included in this year’s meet and photo finished technology will be introduced in the meet for time.     The federation will award first, second and third prizes to the winners of every l events with Tk 3,000, 2,000 and 1,000 respectively while the record holder athletics will be honoured with cash prize of Tk 5,000.       

The quarterfinals of the Bashundhara Group Federation Cup Football begins on Sunday with two matches billing for the day at the Bir Shreshta Shaheed Shipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium at Kamalapur in the capital.   Dhaka Mohammedan SC will play Chittagong Abahani Limited in the first quarterfinal at 4:30 pm while Saif Sporting Club will encounter newcomers Swadhinata KS in the 2nd quarterfinal at 7:30 pm on Sunday. Sheikh Russel KC will meet Rahmatganj MFS at 4:30 pm while Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club will play Dhaka Abahani Limited at 7:30 pm on Monday in remaining two quarterfinals. The two semifinals will be held on January 6 while the final match will commence on January 9 at the same venue,    Earlier, three teams out of 12 premier league clubs--holders Bashundhara Kings, Uttar Baridhara Club and Muktijoddha Sangsad KC–were scratched from the meet as the clubs could not turned up in the field against their rivals as per schedule. Later, the BFF disciplinary committee took some punitive actions against the clubs for the incident. The disciplinary committee, in separate meetings, banned Bashundhara Kings, Uttar Baridhara Club and Muktijoddha Sangsad KC for the next edition of the Federation Cup Football and also imposed a fine of Take five lakhs each against three clubs The three premier division clubs – Bashundhara Kings, Muktijoddha Sngsad KC and Uttara Baridhara Club –informed the BFF in writing that they would not play the Federation Cup in the unplayable conditions of Kamalapur Stadium. 

The BCB declared a 15-man squad for the ICC U19 Men's Cricket World Cup 2022 in early December. The Bangladesh U19 team flew to the UAE in the same month to take part in the 9th edition of the ACC U19 Asia Cup. It took place in the last week of December 2021. However, this competition provided good preparation for the World Cup despite Bangladesh’s loss to India in the semifinal. The SWOT analysis for the 2022 ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup is discussed in this article.  SWOT Study of Bangladesh Youth Squad for the ICC U19 World Cup 2022 The current squad includes three players of the 2020 U19 World Cup-winning team. With the present lineup, Bangladesh's youth team is very much capable of retaining the championship. Let's take a look at Bangladesh U19 World Cup squad: Rakibul Hasan (c), Prantik Nawrose Nabil, Mohammad Fahim, Mushfik Hasan, Iftikher Hossain, Ariful Islam, Mahfijul Islam, Tahjibul Islam, Abdullah Al Mamun, SM Meherob, Aich Mollah, Ripon Mondol, Naimur Rohman, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Ashikur Zaman, Ariful Islam, Mahfijul, (Reserve Players: Ahosun Habib Leon, Jishan Alam)   Read: U-19 Asia Cup: Bangladesh lost to India in semifinal Strength The main strength for Bangladesh's U19 World Cup squad is having Youth World Cup champions Rakibul Hasan, Tanzim Sakib, and Prantik Nabil. These guys know what it takes to win the World Championship. Their presence in the squad will motivate other players. In terms of squad strength, the Bangladesh Youth team boasts a diverse bowling lineup. There are some prospective medium pacers in the team, as well as a few right-arm off-spinners. These players have gained experience playing in a variety of conditions over the last year. As expected, slow left-arm orthodox spinner Naimur Rahman is Bangladesh's most successful youth bowler in 2021. In 11 matches, he took 18 wickets at a fantastic average of 19.22. Naimur was the only Bangladeshi bowler to take 5 wickets in an innings in 2021. Therefore, the bowling unit will have to play the most essential roles in the competition if the Bangladesh U19 team wants to retain the ICC World Youth Championship. Read: Shakib nominated for ICC Men's ODI Player of the Year Notable bowling stats (Youth ODI) by Bangladesh cricketers in 2021  Player Match Wkts BBI Ave Econ SR 4W Naimur Rahman 11 18 5/17 19.22 3.43 33.5 1 Ripon Mondol 6 16 4/20 13.37 3.86 20.7 1 Musfik Hasan 5 11 3/37 16.90 3.74 27 0 Ashiqur Zaman 8 9 3/37 27.55 4.09 40.3 0 Ariful Islam 11 7 2/23 32 3.67 52.2 0 SM Meherob 12 6 1/14 38.66 3.59 64.5 0 Rakibul Hasan 2 3 3/41 13.66 4.10 20 0 Tanzim Hasan Sakib 2 1 1/51 51 5.66 54 0  Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/ Read Conway hits ton to overshadow Bangladeshi pacers Weakness Bangladesh had some excellent top-order batters in the most recent edition of the ICC U19 World Cup. Those players assisted Bangladesh in winning many matches during the 2020 edition of the tournament. Prantik Nabil, who was a part of the 2020 Bangladesh U19 World Cup squad, will play at no. 3 in the upcoming event. Prantik's average in 2021 was under 20 and he didn't even get a half-century. On the other hand, openers Mahfijul and Tahjibul had a decent year. Mahfijul had a 25.83 average and two fifties in 2021. Therefore, Bangladesh's top order has some weaknesses that must be addressed before the major event. Notable Youth ODI batting stats (Top Order) by Bangladesh cricketers in 2021  Player Inn Runs HS Ave SR 50s Mahfijul Islam 12 310 75 25.83 57.72 2 Tahjibul Islam 11 145 50* 14.50 64.44 1 Prantik Nawrose Nabil 8 158 45 19.75 66.10 0  Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/ Read ICC U19 World Cup 2022 Fixtures: Bangladesh to Face England in Group Phase Notable Youth ODI batting stats (Middle Order) by Bangladesh cricketers in 2021      Player Inn Runs HS Ave SR 50s Aich Mollah 12 375 108 34.09 70.22 2 Ariful Islam 11 214 50 23.77 56.16 1 SM Meherob 11 173 52 15.72 66.28 1 Iftakher Hossain 8 167 36 20.87 67.61 0 Abdullah Al Mamun 5 90 37 22.50 68.70 0 Ashiqur Zaman 6 89 54* 89 76.06 1 Md Fahim 2 33 28* 33 89.18 0  Source: https://www.espncricinfo.com/ Read Mominul eager to erase past in New Zealand as Tigers go into first Test Saturday