cricket
Fifties from Mushfiqur, Mosaddek power Abahani’s win
Two stunning fifties from Mushfiqur Rahim and Mosaddek Hossain powered Abahani Limited’s fourth win in the ongoing Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Division Twenty20 Cricket League on Tuesday at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
Abahani won the toss in this game and sent Gazi Group Cricketers bat first, who posted a challenging total of 150 runs for eight wickets in 20 overs.
Mahedi Hasan and Soumya Sarkar came up with a 78-run stand in this game. Mahedi fell prey to Aminul Islam, who ended up taking two wickets in this game, for 43 while Soumya smashed his first fifty, 67 off 50 with six fours and two sixes, of the season. Mominul Haque was the only other Gazi Group batsman to have reached a double-digit score, 12, in this game.
Also read: Mushfiqur Rahim nominated for ICC player of the month
While Aminul bagged two wickets for Abahani, Shohidul Islam also scalped two wickets but he conceded 41 runs in four overs.
In reply, Abahani openers, Mohammad Naim and Munim Shahriar, posted only 28 runs in the first wickets, and number three Najmul Hossain Shanto scored five. Before reaching 50 runs, Abahani lost three wickets.
In the fourth wicket stand, Mushfiqur and Mosaddek added 105 runs, remaining unbeaten for 53 and 50 respectively, and sealed the game for Abahani by seven wickets with 12 balls to play.
Also read: Mushfiqur opts out of Zimbabwe T20Is
Nasum Ahmed, Mahedi Hasan and Sanjit Saha bagged one wicket each for Gazi Group.
In the other games of the day at BKSP, Brothers Union beat Partex Sporting Club by 33 runs, and Prime Bank Cricket Club beat Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club by seven wickets.
Mushfiqur Rahim nominated for ICC player of the month
Bangladesh’s solidly dependable batsman-cum-wicket keeper Mushfiqur Rahim was on Tuesday nominated for the ICC men's Player of the Month award for May for his superb performance against Sri Lanka in Test and ODI series.
Mushfiqur shared the nomination with Pakistan pacer Hasan Ali and Sri Lankan spinner Praveen Jayawickrama.
The ICC also nominated Kathryn Bryce of Scotland alongside the Irish duo of Gaby Lewis and Leah Paul for the Women's Player of the Month award for May.
Also read: Mushfiqur opts out of Zimbabwe T20Is
Mushfiqur played one Test and three ODIs against Sri Lanka.
The experienced player again showcased his full class in the month of May. He scored 80 runs at an average of 40 in the first Test against Sri Lanka.
In the ODI series against the same opposition, he displayed his world-class ability with the bat.
In three matches, Mushfiqur scored 237 runs at an average of 79 and a strike rate of 88.43 and was rightfully adjudged the Player of the Series.
Also read: Marvellous Mushfiqur guides Tigers to 246
His knock of 125 in the second match helped the hosts Bangladesh to seal a first-ever ODI series victory against Sri Lanka.
Hasan Ali played two Tests against Zimbabwe and took a total of 14 wickets while Sri Lankan, debutant spinner Jayawickrama played one Test against Bangladesh and took a total of 11 wickets at 16.11. Jayayawickrama bowled Sri Lanka to victory in the second Test against Bangladesh with the best match figures by any Sri Lankan bowler on Test debut.
The three nominees for either category are shortlisted based on on-field performances and overall achievements during that month of May (the first to the last day of each calendar month), the ICC said in a statement.
Mohammedan suffer second defeat
Mohammedan Sporting Club, who had a flying start to the Bangabandhu Dhaka Premeir Division Twenty20 Cricket League, suffered their second defeat on Tuesday at BKSP.
In the rain-hit game, which was reduced to 6 overs-a-side, Mohammedan lost by 22 runs to Prime Doleshwar Sporting Club.
Read:Mushfiqur opts out of Zimbabwe T20Is
Shakib Al Hasan-led Mohammedan won the toss and opted to bat first. Primed Doleshwar posted 78 runs for four wickets in six overs riding on 14-ball 41 by Imran Uzzaman and 16-ball 29 by Shamim Hossain.
For Mohammedan, Abu Jayed bagged two wickets while Shakib and Ruyel Mia took one wicket each.
In reply, Mohammedan managed only 56 runs losing four wickets in six overs and lost the game by 22 runs. For Prime Doleshwar, Shafiqul Islam bagged three wickets.
Read:Sheikh Jamal end Mohammedan’s winning run
It was Mohammedan’s second defeat in five matches, while it was the fourth win of Prime Doleshwar in as many matches.
On the same day, Legends of Rupganj beat Shinepukur Cricket Club by 14 runs, and Old DOHS beat Khelaghar Samaj Kallyan Samity by 16 runs.
Mushfiqur opts out of Zimbabwe T20Is
Bangladesh stalwart Mushfiqur Rahim sought permission of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to skip the three-match T20I series taking place in Zimbabwe next month.
Read:Sheikh Jamal end Mohammedan’s winning run
A BCB official on Monday confirmed that the wicketkeeper-batsman asked to not count him for Zimbabwe T20Is. However, Mushfiqur is available for the solitary Test and three-match ODI series.
“He has requested for leave to skip T20Is series,” Minajul Abedin, chief selector of BCB, told the media. “The decision will be taken once he submits his request to the cricket operation department officially.”
Read:Dhaka League T20: Khelaghar shock Abahani
Former Bangladesh captain, Mushfiqur, didn’t clear why he is not available for Zimbabwe T20Is. However, Minhajul believes that playing a lot of cricket might have exhausted the batsman.
Mushfiqur is currently busy playing the ongoing Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Division Twenty20 Cricket League. He is representing Abahani Limited in this T20 event.
Sheikh Jamal end Mohammedan’s winning run
Coming into the fourth round of the ongoing Banglabandhu Dhaka Premier Division Twenty20 Cricket League, Mohammedan Sporting Club suffered their first defeat at the hands of Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club on Monday at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
It was Nurul Hasan Sohan, the wicketkeeper-batsman, whose previous highest score this season was just 22, who came up with a whirlwind 66 off 34 deliveries with four fours and five sixes and helped his team to post a challenging total of 161 runs for five in 20 overs.
Read: Dhaka League T20: Khelaghar shock Abahani
Mohammedan failed to chase down the target of 162 despite a 43-ball 57 by Nadif Chowdhury. Ebadat Hossain and Enamul Haque bagged three early wickets to destroy their top-order, and Mohammedan failed to recover from that early damage.
Sheikh Jamal won the toss and batted in an unexpected way to score only 85 runs for five in 15 0vers. But in the last five overs, they added 76 runs without losing any more wickets, thanks to some big hittings from Nurul and Ziaur Rahman who ended up on 35 off 17 balls with one four and three sixes.
Shakib Al Hasan and Abu Hider took two wickets each. Abu Hider conceded 53 runs in four overs.
Read: Taskin, Abu Jayed overshadow Mustafizur’s five-for
In reply, Mohammedan slumped to 15/4, and at the very early stage of the game, they lost the race. Pavez Hossain Emon, who hit a fifty in the previous game, suffered a duck this time around. Along with him, Irfan Sukkur, who also had hit a fifty in the second game of the season, suffered second consecutive duck, and in between them, Shakib only posted two runs.
Mohammedan’s last ray of hope was the bats of Shamsur Rahman and Nadif Chowdhey, who came up with a 48-run stand in the fifth wicket partnership. But they eventually ended up on 145 for eight in 20 overs and lost the game by 16 runs.
For Sheikh Jamal, Enamul bagged three wickets while Ziaur took two.
In the other two games of the day, Gazi Group Cricketers beat Legends of Rupganj by seven wickets and Prime Bank Cricket Club beat Partex Sporting Club by 72 runs at BKSP.
Soumya Sarkar hit 53 off 43 balls with four fours and two sixes for Gazi while Mohammad Mithun was the best batsman for Prime Bank scoring 57 off 36 deliveries with three fours and as many as sixes. For Prime Bank, Rubel Hossain bagged four wickets conceding 30 runs in four overs. It was his first game in the season.
Dhaka League T20: Khelaghar shock Abahani
Khelaghar Samaj Kallyan Samity beat Abahani Limited by nine runs in the ongoing Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Divisions Twenty20 Cricket League on Monday at BKSP.
Imtiaz Hossain hit 66 off 46 balls with six fours and three sixes to guide Khelaghar to 164 for six in 20 overs. Kharghar had won the toss and opted to bat first.
Read:Taskin, Abu Jayed overshadow Mustafizur’s five-for
To chase down the target of 165, Abahani needed to score 48 runs in the last five overs with six wickets in hand.
But one of the strongest teams in the league manage 39 runs and lost the game nine runs losing only one wicket off the last ball of the game.
Two of the last five overs bowled by Khaled Ahmed. He conceded only 12 runs and bagged the wicket of Mosaddek Hossain who was Abahani’s biggest hope to seal the game.
Along with Mosaddek, Afif Hossain was at the wicket in the death overs but failed to impress. Afif faced 16 of the last 30 balls and scored 21 runs while playing the other 14 balls, Mosaddek added 17 runs. Abahani managed only two fours and one six in the last five overs.
Mohammad Naim and Najmul Hossain Shanto were the best batsmen for Abahani in this game. Both of them scored 49 each but failed to continue on a good run. Mosaddek fell prey to Khaled off the last ball for 21 while Afif remained unbeaten for 22.
Read:BCB to investigate MSC's potential breach of bio-bubble
Eventually, Abahani ended up on 156 for six in 20 overs.
For Khelaghar, Rony Chowdhury and Khaled scalped two wickets each while Rafsan Al Mahamud bagged one.
Earlier, Imtiaz’s 66 guided Khelghar to 164 for six in 20 overs. Mehidy Hasan Miraz was the second-highest runs getter for Khelaghar scoring 33.
For Abahani, Arafat Sunny and Mosaddek took two wickets each.
It was the first defeat of Abahani in this league. Before this game, they were at the top of the table with three wins in three games.
In the other games on Monday morning, Prime Doleshwar Sporting Club beat Shinepukur Cricket Club by four wickets and Brothers Union beat Old DOHS Sports by four wickets.
Read:Mushfiqur, Naim guide Abahani to easy win
Saif Hassan hit 50 for Doleshwar with three fours and four sixes to guide them to a comfortable victory while Farhad Reza also played a vital role hitting 27 off 11 balls with two fours and two sixes.
Myshukur Rahaman was the hero of Brothers, who hit 68 off 48 balls with four fours and as many sixes to help his team post a challenging total of 139 runs for five wickets. In reply, Anisul Islam Emon hit 64 for DOHS, but they fell short two runs, ending up on 137 for five in 20 overs.
Taskin, Abu Jayed overshadow Mustafizur’s five-for
Mustafizur Rahman’s second five-for in T20s went in vain as his team Prime Bank Cricket Club lost by 27 runs to Mohammedan Sporting Club in the ongoing Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Division Twenty20 Cricket League on Saturday at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
Superb efforts of Mustafizur during the death overs helped Prime Bank restrict Mohammedan for 150 for eight.
But in reply, Prime Bank tumbled for 123 all wickets in 19.3 overs with Abu Jayed and Taskin Ahmed bagging three wickets each for Mohammedan.
Mohammedan won the toss and opted to bat first. They had a decent start riding on the bat of Parvez Hossain Emon who stuck a 37-ball fifty with three fours and four sixes.
Also read: Mushfiqur, Naim guide Abahani to easy win
When Emon was removed, Mohammedan were batting at 98 for two in 13.1 overs. They had a great chance to post a bigger total. But in the last five overs, Mohammedan lost five wickets just for 35 runs.
Mustafizur ended up taking five wickets for 22 runs, which is jointly his best bowling figures in T20 cricket. He previously bagged five wickets against New Zealand in T20 World Cup in 2016.
In reply, Prime Bank kept losing wickets on a regular basis. Anamul Haque Bijoy, the captain of Prime Bank, failed to do well for the third time in the league. Scoring five in the two previous games, he posted only three this time.
Mohammad Mithun was the highest run-getter for Prime Bank scoring 25 while Tamim Iqbal scored 20. The other batsmen including Rony Talukdar, Alok Kapali, Nahidul Islam and Raqibul Hasan failed to impress.
Also read: Shahadat returns to competitive cricket as BCB accepts his appeal
For Mohammedan, Taskin and Abu Jayed bagged three wickets each conceding 15 and 33 runs respectively.
With this match, the first three rounds of the league ended. Abahani is leading the points table with six points from three wins while Mohammedan also secured six points from as many matches. However, Abahani are slightly ahead of Mohammedan for their better run rate.
The next four teams in the table, in order, are Prime Doleshwar Sporting Club, Prime Bank Cricket Club, Brothers Union and Old DOHS Sports Club.
BCB to investigate MSC's potential breach of bio-bubble
Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Saturday said a potential breach of the bio-secure bubble took place in the ongoing Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Division Twenty20 Cricket League when Mohammedan Sporting Club hosted a practice session on Friday.
The board will now investigate the matter, confirmed Kazi Inam Ahmed, the chairman of the Cricket Committee of Dhaka Metropolis (CCDM).
“We are disappointed to note this incident. Both the CCDM and the BCB have taken this very seriously. The health and safety of our teams, players and officials are most important to us,” Inam said in a statement circulated by the BCB.
Also read: Mushfiqur, Naim guide Abahani to easy win
“We have invested a significant amount of finances and efforts to make sure the BSE protocols are in place including the best possible accommodation and logistics. This incident is being looked into and necessary actions and further precautionary measures will be taken,” the statement further reads.
However, BCB didn’t disclose details of the alleged incident.
The players of Mohammedan joined a practice session on June 4 at the BCB national academy ground. Mohammedan captain Shakib Al Hasan batted at the Mirpur indoor facility as well.
Also read: Shahadat returns to competitive cricket as BCB accepts his appeal
Shakib was accompanied by the Mohammedan coaching staff member, Mehrab Hossain, and team manager Sazzad Ahmed and a couple of net bowlers.
UNB learned that the net bowlers were brought in by Nasir Hossain, who works as a teamboy for the national team. Neither Nasir nor the net bowlers are part of the bio-secure bubble.
Mushfiqur, Naim guide Abahani to easy win
Mushfiqur Rahim and Mohammad Naim guided Abahani to an easy win over Brothers Union in the Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Division Twenty20 Cricket League Saturday at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
In the rain-curtailed match, Brothers batted first after losing the toss and posted 101 runs for five wickets in 11 overs. Zahiduzzaman became the highest run-getter for them, scoring 25 off 10 with two fours and as many sixes.
Also, Alauddin Babu, Mizanur Rahman and Junaid Siddique batted well. They posted 24, 20 and 20.
For Abahani, Tanzim Hasan Sakib took three wickets conceding nine runs in two overs while Arafat Sunny bagged two.
They chased down the target of 102 runs in 9.5 overs, riding on Naim and Mushfiqur. Munim Shahriar also did well, scoring 25 off 12 balls with four fours and one six.
Naim and Mushfiqur remained unbeaten on 36 off 26 and 37 off 21 and Abahani won the game by nine wickets.
For Brothers, Habibur Rahman was the only bowler to take a wicket.
In the first match of the day, Old DOHS Sports Club beat Partex Sporting Club by 10 wickets at the same venue. This match was also reduced to a 15-over-a-side due to rain.
Partex batted first and posted only 77 runs for four wickets in 15 overs. In reply, Anisur Rahman and Raki Ahmed remained unbeaten for 33 and 43 and guided the team home.
Shahadat returns to competitive cricket as BCB accepts his appeal
Bangladesh right-arm pacer Shahadat Hossain made a comeback to competitive cricket after serving a ban of 18 months.
On Saturday, Shahadat played for Partex Sporting Club and bowled two overs but failed to scalp any wicket.
He was originally banned for five years, with two years suspension, in November 2019 for slapping a teammate during a National Cricket League Game in Khulna. He was also fined BDT 100,000.
In March this year, Shahadat submit an appeal to BCB to reduce his punishment and allow him to play domestic cricket so that he can help his family and his ailing mother.
Akram Khan, the cricket operation chairman of BCB, told the media in March that the board is considering allowing him to resume his career.
“His mother is diagnosed with cancer, and he has more problems in his family. We have forwarded his appeal to the disciplinary committee of the board. I think he will be eligible to resume his career soon,” Akram had told the media in March this year.
Shahadat got his international caps in 2005-2006. He represented Bangladesh in 38 Tests, 51 ODIs and 6 T20Is. He enjoyed more success in Tests cricket where he bagged 72 wickets with four five-wicket hauls. In ODIs, he bagged 47 wickets with a hattrick and in T20Is, he has six scalps under his belt.
Shahadat, a 34-year-old right-arm pacer, had played his last international game in 2015 against Pakistan in Dhaka.