United News of Bangladesh

Six-time champions, Dhaka Abahani Limited dropped points with Brothers Union Club as the ninth round match of the Bashundhara Kings Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) Football ended in a goalless draw at the Bir Shreshtho Fl Lt Matiur Rahman Stadium in Munshiganj on Saturday. Despite the day’s draw in a keenly contested match, the sky-blue Dhanmondi outfit Abahani Ltd, without any foreign players, maintained their second slot in the league table, securing 20 points from all nine first-phase matches, while the Gopibagh outfit Brothers Union remained at the 5th slot with 15 points from nine encounters. Pakistan head coach Aaqib Javed backs spin pitches for home test matches Meanwhile, Dhaka Mohammedan SC comfortably dominated the 10-team league, securing 24 points from nine outings despite conceding the first defeat against lowly Youngsmen’s Club Fakirerpool by a 0-1 goal in their ninth match on Friday. Last season’s treble winners, Bashundhara Kings, completed the nine-match first phase league in the third slot, collecting 17 points, while the old Dhaka outfit Rahmatganj MFS is in the fourth place by virtue of better goal differences, securing equal 15 points like the Brothers Union. Abahani’s national-coloured custodian, Mitul Marma, who did not concede any goals in the last six matches, also displayed his brilliance in the day’s match, saving some good opponent’s attempts and being adjudged player of the match. Ashraful Islam Rana of Brothers Union also played entertaining football in the match. In the day’s other match, Fortis FC advanced to the 6th slot in the league table, beating bottom-ranked Chittagong Abahani Limited by a 1-0 goal at the Bashundhara Kings Arena Saturday afternoon. 10th Shah Cement AKS Cup Golf Tournament begins Gambian defender Essa Jallow scored the match-winning goal for Fortis FC in the 34th minute. Fortis FC bagged 11 points from nine outings to move up to 6th place while Chittagong Abahani Limited remained at the bottom with three points from nine encounters.

Gudakesh Motie and Jomel Warrican’s outstanding all-round contributions earned the West Indies a narrow nine-run first-innings lead against Pakistan, as 20 wickets tumbled on the opening day of the second test on Saturday, reports AP. Motie’s crucial 55, his first test half-century, rescued the visitors from a dire 54-8 to a total of 163. The left-arm spinner then claimed 3-49 to dismiss the hosts for 154 on another challenging spinning track at Multan Cricket Stadium. Pakistan head coach Aaqib Javed backs spin pitches for home test matches Motie’s stellar performance overshadowed Noman Ali’s hat trick and his impressive figures of 6-41, as Pakistan’s batters faltered on their own spin-friendly surface. Warrican, who earlier scored an unbeaten 36 at No. 11, also made an impact with the ball, taking 4-43. Mohammad Rizwan (49) and Saud Shakeel (32) briefly revived Pakistan with a 68-run stand for the fifth wicket. However, both fell to Warrican while attempting risky shots in the final session, and the tail collapsed quickly before stumps. Bangladesh miss out direct qualification for Women's ODI World Cup' 2025 losing to West Indies Motie had earlier dismissed Babar Azam (1), bowled while attempting a back-foot cut, and Kamran Ghulam (16), leaving Pakistan struggling at 51-4. Kemar Roach made early inroads with the new ball, trapping Muhammad Hurraira lbw and clean-bowling captain Shan Masood. Earlier in the day, No. 9 Motie added 109 runs with the last two batters before the West Indies were dismissed in an extended three-hour first session. This followed Noman Ali’s demolition of the top order with his left-arm spin. Ali, who had been pivotal in Pakistan’s 127-run victory in the first test alongside Sajid Khan, achieved a hat trick by dismissing Justin Greaves, Tevin Imlach, and Kevin Sinclair in the 12th over, becoming the first Pakistani spinner to claim a hat trick in test cricket. The West Indies’ top-order batters once again struggled against spin on a crumbling pitch, as they had in the first test, where they were bowled out for 137 and 123, losing within three days. Motie, playing his 11th test, fought back with resilience. He shared a 41-run partnership with Roach (25) and followed it up with a 68-run stand alongside Warrican. BPL 2025 T20 Cricket Tournament: Top Performers Leading the Charge So Far Debutant pacer Kashif Ali removed Mikyle Louis, finding the outside edge after Kraigg Brathwaite elected to bat first. Off-spinner Sajid Khan trapped Amir Jangoo lbw for a four-ball duck, while Ali dismissed Brathwaite in similar fashion. Noman Ali’s hat trick was a memorable triple-wicket maiden over. Greaves was caught close to the wicket by Babar Azam, Imlach failed to review an lbw decision off a full-pitched delivery, and Sinclair edged to the gully, where Babar completed a stunning low catch. Four Pakistan pacers — Wasim Akram, Abdul Razzaq, Mohammad Sami, and Naseem Shah — have previously achieved test hat tricks, with Akram doing so twice against Sri Lanka in 1999. Naseem was the last to achieve the feat, against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi in 2020. The West Indies made two changes for this match, bringing in Roach for the injured Jayden Seals, and debuting Amir Jangoo at No. 3 in place of the out-of-form Keacy Carty. This is the final series for both teams in the World Test Championship, with Pakistan ranked eighth and West Indies ninth. Australia and South Africa have already secured their places in the WTC final at Lord’s in June.

Bangladesh women's team narrowly missed the direct qualification for the ICC Women's 0DI World Cup 2025 losing to hosts West Indies by eight wickets in a series deciding day-night 3rd and last ODI match at the Warner Park, Basseterre in St Kitts Friday night  After the Friday' s  match, Bangladesh women' s team not only failed to qualify for World Cup directly, but also lost the three- match ODI series 1-2 against the Caribbeans. Bangladesh women's needed just an outright victory or no result in Friday's 3rd and last match for their direct qualification in ODI World Cup, but suffered a frustrating eight wicket defeat destroying their long charished dream. New Zealand qualified to play in the World Cup directly toppling Bangladesh by virtue of better run rate despite of securing 21 points in the Women's Championship  like Bangladesh. Women's ODI Series: Bangladesh taste maiden victory against West Indies in any format Earlier, Bangladesh Women's came close to fulfill their dream to play in the World Cup as they tasted the maiden win against West Indies in any format of cricket beating them by 60 runs in the 2nd ODI to level the three-match 1-1 last Tuesday after conceding a nine-wicket defeat in the first ODI. However, Bangladesh has an outside chance to qualify for  the eight-nation final round of the Women's ODI World Cup after playing in the six- team qualifying round with Pakistan, West Indies, Ireland, Scotland and Thailand. Top two teams of the qualifying round will earn the rights to play in the eight- team final round with Australia England, South Africa, Sri Lanka, New Zealand and hosts India. In the 3rd and last ODI on Friday night  Bangladesh women's team batted first after winning toss and were bundled out cheaply for just 118 runs in 43.5 overs with Sharmin Akter (37l  Sobhana Mostary (25) and Fargana Hoque  (22) were the main contributors  In reply, West Indian women's easily reached their target scoring 122 runs the loss of eight wickets in 27.3 overs.

Pakistan head coach Aaqib Javed says there’s no harm in preparing wickets for spinners at home to get favorable results as Pakistan eyes a clean sweep against the West Indies in their two-match test series. Spin trio Noman Ali, Sajid Khan and Abrar Ahmed claimed all 20 wickets in Pakistan’s 127-run victory in the first test at Multan, which also hosts the second test starting Saturday. “If we had taken these decisions earlier, then we would have been in the race for the World Test Championship final,” Javed told reporters Friday. “The rule of test cricket is to win at home. If you win at home and you win 2-3 tests away, you become a strong candidate for the final.” Javed said “of course” they were right "to prepare a spin pitch against West Indies. Their batters are not as proficient against spin when compared to fast bowling.” Pakistan is No. 8 just ahead of last-place West Indies in the WTC standings with Australia and South Africa already into this June’s final at Lord’s. Pakistan lost 2-0 to Bangladesh at home and then trailed 1-0 against England before Javed took over the pitch preparations, drying out the 22-yard pitches in Multan and Rawalpindi with the help of industrial-sized fans and patio heaters. Australia's women win Ashes series with another T20 victory over England The engineered pitches favoured the home spinners as Pakistan recorded a 2-1 series win against England and followed it with another convincing win against the West Indies. “We think we can prepare these pitches in every center of Pakistan, and it should be as difficult to beat Pakistan here as it is to beat Australia or South Africa away,” Javed said. “People should know if they’re going to Pakistan, they will have to do something extraordinary to beat Pakistan.” The spin domination has seen Pakistan going with just one fast bowler, Khurram Shahzad, in the first test. Without naming any present day Pakistan fast bowler, Javed said Pakistan pacers have got a dip in their art of reverse swing with the old red-ball once used efficiently by the likes of Shoaib Akhtar, Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis in the past. “We used to be strong on reverse swing, but now that skill level has gone down,” Javed said. “We have told our fast bowlers if you want to take wickets here, their reverse swing skill will have to go up.” The spin pitches in Pakistan have seen the home team batters struggle against quality spinners such as West Indies left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican, who took a match haul of 10 wickets in the first test. “If foreign players are struggling on these pitches, so are our players because they have never played on these pitches,” Javed said. "We have told them their training and practice routines will be geared towards this, and we will change domestic pitches, too.” Pakistan starts the next WTC cycle in October when it hosts South Africa for two test matches.

Since December 30, 2024, the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) 2025 T20 Cricket Tournament has been spellbinding cricket fans with exciting performances. As the competition progresses towards Phase 4, standout players and teams have begun to shape the narrative. Let’s dive into the brilliance of the standout bowlers, batsmen, and teams leading the race. Bangladesh Premier League 2025 Tournaments Top 5 Batsmen To Date . Table: Top Run-scorers in the 11th Edition of BPL So Far No Batsman Team Most Run Match Highest Score Century Half Century 1 Tanzid Hasan Tamim Dhaka Capitals 420 10 108 1 3 2 Mohammad Anamul Haque Bijoy Durbar Rajshahi 379 10 100 1 2 3 Litton Das Dhaka Capitals 348 9 125 1 2 4 Zakir Hasan Sylhet Strikers 342 9 75 - 3 5 Graham Clark Chittagong Kings 335 8 101 1 1 The T20 cricket action has been a stage for outstanding batting displays, with Tanzid Hasan Tamim from Dhaka Capitals taking the lead. His collection is 420 runs in 10 matches, including a highest score of 108. He has one century and three half-centuries to his name. Mohammad Anamul Haque Bijoy from Durbar Rajshahi follows closely with 379 runs in 10 matches. His highest score of 100 and ability to deliver one century and two half-centuries underline his value. Litton Das, also from Dhaka Capitals, has 348 runs in 9 matches, with a remarkable performance of 125 runs. Apart from the century inning, he has 2 half-centuries in the remaining matches. Zakir Hasan from Sylhet Strikers has scored 342 runs in 9 matches, though without a century. He maintains a steady performance with 3 half-centuries including a top score of 75 runs. Finally, Graham Clark, an English player who played for Chittagong Kings, completes the list with 335 runs in 8 matches. His achievement also includes a half-century and the best batting delivery with a Centurion inning of 101 runs. Read more: BPL Football: 9th round begins Friday with leaders Mohammedan taking on Youngmen’s Club Top 5 Bowlers in the Ongoing BPL 2025 Tournament . Table: Leading Wicket-takers in the 11th edition of BPL Before Phase 4 No Bowler Team Wickets Match Overs Best Bowling in Innings 1 Taskin Ahmed Durbar Rajshahi 22 10 38.2 7/19 2 Akif Javed Rangpur Riders 15 7 26.5 4/32 3 Abu Hider Rony Khulna Tigers 15 8 30.5 4/44 4 Khushdil Shah Rangpur Riders 14 9 24 3/18 5 Aliss Al Islam Chittagong Kings 12 8 31 3/17 The bowlers have been equally influential in the tournament, with Taskin Ahmed of Durbar Rajshahi dominating the charts. He bowled 38 overs and 2 balls in 10 matches, securing 22 wickets with a personal best of 7 wickets against 19 runs. Akif Javed, Pakistani cricketer on behalf of Rangpur Riders is second with 15 wickets in 7 matches from 26 overs and 5 balls. He boasts a best figure of 4 wickets in 32 runs. Abu Hider Rony from Khulna Tigers also claimed 15 wickets in 30 overs 5 balls of 8 matches. His top spell was 44 runs off 4 wickets. Rangpur Riders' Khushdil Shah, a Pakistani player by origin, takes the fourth spot with 14 wickets in 24 overs across 9 matches. In an innings, he reached a maximum of 18 runs from 3 wickets. Aliss Al Islam of Chittagong Kings rounds off the top five with 12 wickets in 8 matches, bowling 31 overs. His personal best for an innings was 17 runs for 3 wickets. Read more: BPL Football: League leaders Mohammedan SC taste first defeat losing to Youngmen's Club Top 4 Teams in the 11th Edition of Bangladesh Premier League So Far . Table: Points Table Standings - Top 4 Teams Before Phase 4 of BPL 2025 No Team Match Won Lost Points Net Run Rate (NRR) 1 Rangpur Riders 9 8 1 16 1.223 2 Fortune Barishal 8 6 2 12 0.993 3 Chittagong Kings 9 5 4 10 1.045 4 Khulna Tigers 9 4 5 8 -0.148 The tournament is led by Rangpur Riders, who have won all but one of 9 matches, earning 16 points and the season's highest NRR of 1.223. Fortune Barishal holds second place with 6 wins from 8 matches, accumulating 12 points and an NRR of 0.993. Chittagong Kings sit third, with 5 wins and 4 losses from 9 matches, earning 10 points and maintaining an NRR of 1.045. Khulna Tigers round out the top 4, securing 4 wins and 8 points from 9 matches. However, their 5 losses have left them with a negative NRR of -0.148. Read more: 10th Shah Cement AKS Cup Golf Tournament begins Summary The BPL 2025’s best performers to date include batsmen Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Mohammad Anamul Haque Bijoy, Litton Das, Zakir Hasan, and Graham Clark. Sitting atop the bowling charts with the highest wickets are Taskin Ahmed, Akif Javed, Abu Hider Rony, Khushdil Shah, and Aliss Al Islam. The teams dominating the competition are the Rangpur Riders, Fortune Barishal, Chittagong Kings, and Khulna Tigers. The 2025 Bangladesh Premier League will end on February 7. It is expected that the T20 Tournament will keep the cricket fans entertained with magical performances and exciting records. Read more: BPL Cricket: Durbar Rajshahi inflict first defeat of the season on leaders Rangpur Riders

Australia's women had already retained the Ashes. Now they've won the series against England. The Australians won the rain-affected second Twenty20 by six runs in Canberra on Thursday to extend their 100% start to the series and move into a 10-0 lead with just one more T20 and a test match remaining. The English were set 186 to win and reached 168-4 with five balls left when heavy rain fell and no further play was possible. They were six runs short of the required score set by the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method. Read: Women's ODI Series: Bangladesh taste maiden victory against West Indies in any format The Australians, who have won all three ODIs and the first two T20s, have held the Ashes since 2015, when they won the multi-format series on English soil.

Mid-table Durbar Rajshahi  forced League leader Rangpur Riders to concede first defeat in the seven-team Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) Cricket beating them by 24 runs at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram on Thursday. Despite the day’s maiden defeat, Rangpur Riders maintained their top slot in the league intact securing 16 points from nine matches with eight wins and one defeat while middle rated Durbar Rajshahi are still struggling for the qualifiers with eight points from ten encounters. Sent into bat first in the day’s match, Durbar Rajshahi piled up a moderate 170 for 9 in 20 overs with middle order Yasir Ali quick-firing 60 runs off 32 deliveries hitting two four and six sixes. Later Yasir was adjudged most valuable player of the match by Cricinfo. Opener Sabbir Hossain (39), one down Anamul Haque Bijoy (34), another opener Mohammad Haris (19) were the other notable batters to reach the double figures. BPL: Rajshahi beat Sylhet as Sunzamul takes three wickets Akif Javed and Khurshdil Shah grabbed three wickets each conceding 23 and 31 runs respectively. In reply, Rangpur Riders were bundled out for 146 runs in 19.2 overs with one down Saif Hasan making 29-ball 43 runs featuring five fours and two sixes. Nurul Hasan Shohan fired a captain knock of 41 runs off 26 balls hitting four fours and two sixes, bowling all rounder  Mohammad Saifuddin  made 14-ball 23 runs including two fours and a six while and Khurhdil Shah made 13-ball 14 runs featuring a six, were the main contributors for Rangpur Riders. Ryan Buri of Rajshahi claimed four wickets 22 runs and was adjudged player of the match while SM Meherob and Taskin Ahmed took two wickets each giving away 19 and 20 runs respectively.

Bangladesh Women's team tasted the maiden win against West Indies in any format of cricket beating the hosts by 60 runs at Warner Park, Basseterre in St Kitts on Tuesday evening. By virtue of this victory, Bangladesh not only leveled the series with West Indies 1-1, but also stayed one win away from direct qualification for this year's eight-team ICC Women's ODI World Cup. Hosts West Indies took 1-0 lead outplaying Bangladesh by a nine-wicket margin in the first match of the series last Sunday. If Bangladesh win their remaining 3rd and last ODI against West Indies or the match ended in a no result on next Friday, then Bangladesh will get direct qualification for Women's ODI World Cup for the first time. U-19 WC: Bangladesh girls move into Super 6 In the 2nd ODI on Tuesday, sent to bat first, Bangladesh scored a moderate total of 184 for all in 48.5 overs featuring 68 runs off 120 balls with five boundaries by captain Nigar Sultana. This was her 5th ODI half century. Besides, Sobhani Mostary (23), Shorna Akter (21), opener Fargana Hoque (18), opener Murshida Khatun (12) and Sharmin Akter (11) were the other major contributors for Bangladesh. Karishma Ramharack snatched four wickets for 33 runs while Aaliyah Alleyne took three wickets for 24 runs. In reply, West Indies women were bundled out for 124 runs in 35 overs with one down Shemaine Campbelle making the team highest 28 runs. Nahida Akter grabbed three wickets for 31 runs in 10 overs and was adjudged the player of the match. Besides, Fahima Khatun, Rabeya Khan and Marufa Akter captured two wickets each conceding 17, 19 and 35 runs respectively.

Dhaka Capitals moved up to the fourth place of the points table, beating Chittagong Kings by eight wickets on Wednesday in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) match in Chattogram. It was Dhaka’s third win in 10 matches, while it was Chittagong’s fourth defeat in nine matches. Chittagong batted first and posted 148 for six wickets in 20 overs. Naeem Islam was the highest scorer with 44, while Zubaid Akbari posted 23, and Graham Clark scored 19. U-19 WC: Bangladesh girls move into Super 6 For Dhaka, Mosaddek Hossain took two wickets for 13 runs in three overs, while Nazmul Islam and Ronsford Beaton scalped two wickets each. Tanzid Hasan led Dhaka’s reply with 90 off 54 balls. He hit seven sixes and three fours. Tanzid and Litton Das shared a 75-run stand in the opening partnership. Dhaka reached the target in just 18.1 overs.

Bangladesh have advanced to the Super Six stage of the ICC Women's U-19 T20 World Cup, beating Scotland by 17 runs in their last Group D match. The match was held at YSD-UKM Cricket Oval in Bangi in Malaysia on Wednesday. With the day's feat, Bangladesh finished Group D runners-up, securing four points from three matches, beating Nepal by five wickets, and losing to Australia by two wickets. Australia topped Group D, collecting a full six points from three straight matches. Sent in to bat first in the day's match, the Bangladesh women's team scored a moderate total of 120 runs for 9 in a quota of 20 overs, featuring a captain's knock of not out 28 runs off 36 balls with two fours by Sumaiya Akter. Chittagong Kings crush Rajshahi by 111 Runs Besides, Afia Ashima (21), Juairiya Ferdous (20), and Fahmida Choya (14) were the other notable batters for Bangladesh, while another 21 runs of the innings came from extras. Ammy Baldie and Maisie Maceira took two wickets each, conceding 15 and 27 runs, respectively. Chasing a target of 121 runs, the Scottish women were forced to fold their innings at 103 runs for 8 in 20 overs, with one down batter cum wicketkeeper, Pippa Sproul, contributing the match's highest 43 runs off 41 balls, hitting four fours and a six. Besides, captain Niamh Muir (22) and opener Emma Walsingham (11) were other major contributors for Scotland. Anisa Akter Soba made the major damage in Scotland's innings, grabbing four wickets for 25 runs with a maiden and was adjudged the player of the match. Habiba Islam and Nishita Akter Nishi of Bangladesh claimed one wicket each, giving away 16 and 30 runs, respectively.