Defending champions Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishtan (BKSP) and former champions Dhaka District reached the final round of the Al Arafah Islami Bank 27th National Youth Hockey Tournament 2022 with all win record beating their rivals comfortably in their 2nd matches at the Maulana Bhasani National Stadium here on Saturday. The national sports training institute team BKSP, which made a flying start crushing Narayanganj District by 12-0 goals in their first match, today (Saturday) outplayed Kishoreganj District by 8-0 goals. Saddam Khan struck three, Ramim Hossain, Sabedur Rahman Saju, Shimul Islam, Azizur Rahman and Aman Sharif scored one goal each for BKSP. Read: First phase of National Youth Hockey begins Thursday In the day's other match, Dhaka District crushed Gazipur District by 16-0 goals. Earlier in the tournament opener, Dhaka District outplayed Shariatpur District by 13-0 goals.  In the day's match, Rafiul Haque struck four goals, Shahadat Hossain scored three, Tanjil Rahman Ranok, and Mohammad Emon scored two goals each while Nazmus Sabit, Pavel Hossain Pappu, Wasim Ahmed, Shihab Ahmed and Shahruk Mia scored one each for Dhaka.  A record 57 teams, split into nine groups, are taking part in the first phase of the country wide meet. The nine zonal venues are: Dhaka, Mymensingh, Khulna, Narail, Dinajpur, Joypurhat, Faridpur, Cumilla and Chattogram.

BKSP Red team emerged unbeaten champions in the Sheikh Kamal U-23 Boys 3 on 3 Basketball Tournament beating Rangers Club by 31-10 points in the final st the Shaheed Suhrawardy National Indoor Stadium in Mirpur on Saturday. Vice President of Bangladesh Basketball Federation ( BBF) Moinul Ahsan Monju and BBF general secretary AK Sarkar were present in the day's final and later they distributed the prizes. Also read: Bangabandhu Basketball: Bokshi Bazar beat Josephites 51-48 A total of nine teams took part in the tournament, arranged on the occasion of the 73rd birth anniversary of Sheikh Kamal, the eldest son of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Also read: Victory Day Basketball: Navy, Army reach final

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday said the government will set up a sports institute like BKSP in every division of the country as sports and physical exercise are very essential for having a healthy young generation. “If we can keep our children involved in sports and cultural practices regularly, they’re unlikely to go astray, never get addicted to drugs and engage in militancy. They won’t quit studies either,” she said. The Prime Minister was addressing the prize distribution ceremony of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman National Gold Cup Football Tournament, Boys (Under-17) and Bangamata Sheikh Fazilatunessa Mujib National Gold Cup Football Tournament, Girls (under-17)-2021, joining it virtually from Ganobhaban. Also read: PM Hasina for forging strong worker-owner relations to boost productivity On behalf of the Prime Minister, State Minister for Youth and Sports Zahid Ahsan Russel distributed trophies, medals and prize money at Birshrestha Shaheed Sipahi Mohammad Mostafa Kamal Stadium in the city’s Kamalapur area. Sylhet Division clinched the title of Bangabandhu Gold Cup Boys U-17, while Rangpur Division won the title of Bangamata Gold Cup Girls U-17. Hasina said the government has already decided to set up a sports institute in every division. “There’ll be a BKSP-like institute in every division. We’ve already approved two more sports institutes and will also approve such institutes for other divisions… Sports and physical exercise is essential,” she said. The Prime Minister stressed the need for the engagement of the young generation in sports alongside education for having a sound mind and body. Also read: JS body for immediate opening of unused stadiums Earlier, the Prime Minister virtually witnessed the girls’ final match between Rangpur Division and Mymensingh. In the final matches, Sylhet Division beat Rajshahi Division in a penalty shootout, while Rangpur Division beat Mymensigh Division by 1-0. Youth and Sports (senior) Secretary Akhter Hossain and President of Bangladesh Football Federation Kazi Salahuddin, among others, were present. This year, a total of 110,557 young athletes participated in the countrywide mega tournament. As part of the tournament, some 4828 teams –4,571 Union ones and 257 municipality ones – joined the Upazila-level competition and then 581 teams –492 Upazila ones, 29 city ones and 60 municipality teams – participated in the district-level competition. Subsequently, 68 teams – 64 district teams and 4 city teams- took part in the divisional-level competition and finally eight divisional-level teams participated in the national-level competition.

Bangladesh Krira Sikkha Protishtan (BKSP) clinched the top slot in the Bangabandhu 34th National Age Group Swimming and Diving Competition’2021, securing 48 gold, 53 silver and 42 bronze medals on the 3rd and final day of the meet at the concluded at Syed Nazrul Islam National Swimming Complex in Mirpur on Tuesday. Bangladesh Ansar followed the leader with 23 gold, 11 silver and 9 bronze, Gopalganj Swimming Club finished distant 3rd collecting nine gold medals while Bogra Swimming Center became 4th with 5 gold, 7 silver and 3 bronzes. A total of 28 events were decided on the 3rd day and final day (Tuesday). Mukti Khatun of Bangladesh Ansar was adjudged the best female swimmer of the meet securing eleven gold and two silvers with three new national records, while Mohammad Islam of Gopalganj Swimming Club named as the best man swimmer securing nine gold also featuring three new national records. Secretary General of Bangladesh Olympic Association (BOA) Syed Shahed Reza was the chief guest at the day’s closing function and distributed the prizes at a simple ceremony, chaired by general secretary of Bangladesh Swimming Federation MB Saif. Bangladesh Swimming Federation arranged the meet on the occasion of the birth centenary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman that featured eleven new nationals records over the three days.

The Bangladesh Krira Sikkha Protishtan (BKSP) claimed 34 gold medals till Monday to remain a runaway leader in the Bangabandhu 34th National Age Group Swimming and Diving Competition 2021. The BKSP secured 103 medals, including 37 silver and 32 bronze medals, up to the second day of the three-day meet at the Syed Nazrul Islam National Swimming Complex in Mirpur. READ: In swimming, it’s different strokes for different folks  Bangladesh Ansar remained in second place with 18 golds, eight silvers and four bronzes. The third-placed Bogura Swimming Centre collected three golds, four silvers and two bronzes.   Thirty-six events were completed today, featuring six new national records – five in swimming and one in diving. Five swimming events were boys' and girls' 200-metre breaststroke (18-20 year group), boys' 200-metre backstroke (18-20 year group), boys' 100-metre butterfly (18-20 year group), boys' 100-metre freestyle (18-20 year group) and one-metre springboard diving. READ: Bangabandhu 34th National Age Group Swimming begins on Sunday   Sunday, President of the Bangladesh Swimming Federation (BSF) and Chief of Naval Staff Admiral M Shaheen Iqbal inaugurated the three-day meet at a simple ceremony, chaired by Tarafder M Ruhul Amin, the BSF vice-president and managing director of the meet's sponsor Saif Powertek.

Shamim Hossain was one of Bangladesh's best performers during his U-19 cricketing days. He was picked for the primary squad of the Bangladesh U-19 team for World Cup 2018 but was overlooked in the main tournament.  The all-rounder's wait for playing in the U-19 World Cup ended in 2020 when he and Bangladesh lifted the title of the event for the first time, beating India. Shamim could not do much for the team in the World Cup with the bat but was one of the best fielders of the tournament.  Despite the pandemic, Shamim kept himself fit and ready to do well whenever a chance arrives. In the Bangabandhu T20 League, which took place later last year, he won the best fielder's award. The all-rounder also proved his batting prowess during the death overs over the last two years.

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.   

Bangladesh national cricket team will play an intrasquad game Friday in Savar's BKSP – the only practice game to be played by the hosts ahead of the three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka which starts on May 23 in Dhaka. The visitors will also play a practice game at the same venue on Friday. Bangladesh started preparing for this series on May 18. However, most parts of the first-day practice session got interrupted by the rain. However, the Tigers had a full-day practice Wednesday at the outdoor and indoor of the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. In the intra-squad match, Bangladesh ODI captain Tamim Iqbal will lead the BCB Red against T20 captain Mahmududllah Riayd's BCB Green. The match will start at 9:45am Thursday. Tamim's team includes Imrul Kayes, Liton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mustafizur Rahman. Mahmudullah's team contains the likes of Shakib Al Hasan, Soumya Sarkar and Taskin Ahmed. Shakib and Mustafizur are set to return to the national side with the three-match ODI series. They last played for the Tigers in New Zealand earlier this year. After that, the players missed out on the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka as they took part in the Indian Premier League. While the first match of the ODI series will take place on May 23, the remaining matches will be played on May 25 and 28. All the matches will be hosted at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.

 

Saif Hassan struck the first ton of the 22nd Walton National Cricket League (NCL) on Monday at BKSP for Dhaka Division against Rangpur Division.