Abahani beat Mohammedan by 60 runs Sunday in their first match of the Super League of the ongoing Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Division T20 Cricket League. Mohammedan won the toss and opted to bowl first at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. Abahani – asked to bat first – scored 193/7 in 20 overs as captain Mushfiqur Rahim hit 57 off 32 balls with eight fours and one six; and Munim Shahriar posted 43 off 27 balls with five fours and two sixes. Also, Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mohammad Naim scored 27 and 24; Mosaddek Hossain came to bat at number seven and posted 14 off seven balls. Also read: Who is the favorite to win DPL T20 Cricket League? In the last five overs of their innings, Abahani scored 61 runs, which eventually helped them seal the game. Ruyel Miah was the most successful bowler for Mohammedan, who took three wickets conceding 19 runs in four overs. Asif Hasan also scalped three wickets but he conceded 47 runs in four overs. Chasing 194, Mohammedan suffered a batting collapse in the first over when they lost two wickets to Mohammad Saifuddin. In the sixth over, the last over of the powerplay, they lost two more wickets to Mosaddek Hossain. In the very next over, Mohammedan lost two more wickets. Also read: DPL Super League: First day's play washed out At the halfway stage of their innings, Mohammedan were struggling at 49 for six. Four of Mohammedan's recognised batsmen were dismissed for a duck. They could not make up for the early loss of wickets and lost the game by a big margin. However, Abu Hider Rony hit a fifty and remained unbeaten on 53 off 42 balls with five fours and two sixes. For Abahani, Saifuddin and Mosaddek bagged two wickets each while Tanzim Hasan Sakib and Arafat Sunny took one wicket each.

The Super League phase of the Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Division Twenty20 Cricket League is all set to begin Saturday at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium without the two most senior national team players – Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal. Shakib left Dhaka for the US early Friday to spend time with his family; Tamim has suffered a leg injury throughout the league. Both Shakib and Tamim's teams – Mohammedan Sporting Club, and Prime Bank Cricketers – have qualified for the Super League. Masuduzzaman, the chair of the cricket committee of Mohammedan, said: "Shakib asked for permission to skip the Super League to spend time with his family in the US. Respecting his decision, we approved his leave." Also read: Shakib banned for three matches, fined Tk 5 lakh Tamim said: "I have been suffering from a leg injury and discussed my condition with the medical team of the board. They told me to rest for a while. Since we have a long series in Zimbabwe, I think I have to be better prepared than I'm right now. So I think I should skip the Super League." Super League lineup Prime Bank Cricket Club topped the points table with the most wins in the initial phase of the league, which consists of 11 rounds. The table-toppers won nine matches and the number two team Abahani eight. Prime Doleshwar, Gazi Group Cricketers, Mohammedan Sporting Club and Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club are the other teams of the Super League. On Saturday, three matches will take place at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium where Doleshwar will face Gazi Group at 9am. In the second match, Prime Bank will play against Sheikh Jamal at 2pm while Abhani will take on Mohammedan at 6:30pm. All the matches will be telecast live on GTV and T Sports. Also read: Tamim fined for breaching ICC Code of Conduct against Sri Lanka The second, third, fourth and fifth rounds of the Super League will be played on June 20, 22, 23 and 25 at the same venue. Three teams – Legends of Rupganj, Old DOHS Sports Club and Partex Sporting Club – who hit the rock bottom in the points table – will take on each other once in the relegation round, which will also begin on June 19 at BKSP. The toppers of the relegation league will get the chance to play the next Dhaka League directly, but the other two teams will be relegated to the first division, and they will need to end it as the champions or runners-up to play the next edition of Dhaka League.