United News of Bangladesh

Harry Brook's reign as England's new white-ball captain began by thumping the West Indies by 238 runs in a one-day international at Edgbaston on Thursday. For the first time in an ODI, the first seven batters scored 35 or more as England racked up 400-8. Brook was among four players to contribute half-centuries. The West Indies needed to pull off a record run chase but was out for 162 in the 27th. Medium-pacer Saqib Mahmood knocked over the top order and fast bowler Jamie Overton got hold of the tail. “That was a pretty phenomenal performance,” Brook said. “I'm not concerned (no one convrtd fifties into hundrds). We got 400 runs. If one of us kicks on, that's a complete performance.” England can clinch its first ODI bilateral series win since September 2023 on Sunday in Cardiff. The third and last match is on Tuesday at the Oval. About all that England lost at Edgbaston was the toss. Bengaluru storms into IPL qualifier 1 as Pant’s century goes in vain for Lucknow West Indies thought it could exploit humid conditions but the initial bowling was mediocre and Ben Duckett and Jamie Smith, who was opening for the first time and dropped on 1, smashed 64 runs within seven overs. By the end of the powerplay, England was 90 for the loss of only Smith. Duckett made 60 off 48 balls, and Joe Root 57. Brook added 58 as the scoring rate was pegged back in the middle overs. But as 400 looked to fall out of reach, Barbados-born Jacob Bethell, brought back from the Indian Premier League to play his first international at his home ground, launched into the West Indies with 82 off 53 until falling in the last over. Bethell and Will Jacks added 98 from 44 balls. England reached 400 for the sixth time ever, and has never lost from that vantage point. The total might have been much higher if ordinary West Indies bowling hadn't been compensated by outstanding catches. Roston Chase's leaping one-handed take at backward point to dismiss Duckett was the pick, just ahead of Brandon King's reflexes to snatch Smith's rocket at short midwicket and Keacy Carty's diving catch at deep cover to end Brook's threatening innings. The batting performance wasn't in the same class. Punjab demolishes Mumbai and secures top-two spot in IPL playoffs Mahmood nagged out Justin Greaves in the third over and Carty in the 10th, while Brydon Carse was too quick for King. Carse's stunning boundary catch ended captain Shai Hope in the 12th over at 66-4 and it was all downhill for the visitors. Mahmood and Overton led with three wickets each.

Eight directors of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) today (Thursday) reportedly submitted a letter to the Ministry of Youth and Sports seeking the removal of present BCB President Faruque Ahmed. They accused BCB boss Faruque Ahmed of autocratic leadership, constitutional violations, financial mismanagement and maintaining relations with controversial persons. In the letter, addressed to the Youth and Sports Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan, the directors blamed Faruque Ahmed of consistently bypassing board members and violating the BCB constitution in key administrative and financial matters. The signatory BCB directors are: Mahbubul Alam, Kazi Enam Ahmed, Fahim Sinha, Nazmul Abedeen Fahim,  Salahuddin Chowdhury, Iftikhar Rahman Mithu, Saifur Alam Swapan Chowdhury and Manjur Alam. Of the active BCB directors at present, only Akram Khan has not signed the letter. The directors claim that Faruque Ahmed  has taken unilateral decisions without consulting board members or committees, introduced favoritism and interference in both national team operations and club cricket. Mehidy gets BCB nod to play in PSL for Lahore Qalandars He appointed unqualified and controversial individuals some with alleged criminal backgrounds—to key positions in cricket operations and capable professionals have been ignored. The directors requested the Ministry of Youth and Sports to take immediate steps to  withdraw Faruque Ahmed’s nomination to the BCB and urged the ministry to investigate the allegations and take necessary legal action to uphold the future of Bangladesh cricket. Faruque, who took the hot seat of BCB  following the exit of Nazmul Hasan on August 21 last year , was called by the Youth and Sports Affairs Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan on Wednesday (May 28) . Faruque said the adviser hinted to him that they don't want him to continue, but he has not taken any final decision yet in this regard. "No, I'm not resigning at this moment,  there's no reason for me to resign at the moment. They haven't given me any explanation, so why should I step down?" Faruque  added. Nahid, Rishad opt out of PSL return, confirms BCB Former Bangladesh captain Aminul Islam Bulbul is being named as the likeliest candidate to replace him. Bulbul has also confirmed that he was contacted by the Sports Ministry to take the role at the head of BCB and that he has agreed to take the helm till elections are held at the cricket board.

Shadab Khan delivered a notable all-round performance, and Hasan Ali bagged five wickets as Pakistan began their T20I series vs Bangladesh with a 37-run win at the Gaddafi Stadium on Wednesday night. After opting to bat first, Pakistan overcame a shaky start to post a formidable 201 for 7 in their 20 overs. Skipper Agha Salman (56 off 34) and Shadab Khan (48 off 25) led the charge with quickfire knocks, supported by Hasan Nawaz’s explosive 44 off 22 balls. Despite early strikes by Shoriful Islam and Mahedi Hasan, Pakistan recovered from 5 for 2 to dominate the middle overs. Bangladesh’s bowlers struggled to contain the flow of runs, with leg-spinner Rishad Hossain proving expensive, conceding 55 in his four overs. First T20: Pakistan recover from early loss of 2 wickets against Bangladesh in Lahore Shoriful picked up two wickets but lacked consistent support. Chasing a stiff target of 202, Bangladesh showed promise early on through Tanzid Hasan’s brisk 31 and captain Litton Das’s 48 off 30 balls. However, the innings faltered after Litton’s dismissal at 100 in the 12th over. The middle and lower order collapsed under pressure, with only Jaker Ali (36 off 20) offering resistance. Hasan Ali was the best bowler for the hosts, claiming a match-winning 5 for 30 in 3.2 overs, including key wickets at the death. Shadab added two wickets and two catches to his batting exploits, earning him the Player of the Match award. Bangladesh were bowled out for 164 in 19.2 overs, handing Pakistan a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Hosts Pakistan faced initial batting collapse losing  two wickets for just five runs in 1.2 overs against touring Bangladesh after opting to bat first in the first match of three-match T20I series at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Wednesday night. Winning the toss, Pakistani captain Salman Agha decided to bat first in the day's first T201where Pakistan made five changes of the last T20 squad that played against New Zealand in last March. The batting decision of Pakistan backfired as they made a frustrating start losing top two wickets of Saim Ayub (0) and Fakhar Zaman (1) for just five runs in 1.2 overs. Mahedi Hasan and Shoriful Islam grabbed one wicket each in their first over dismissing Saim Ayub and Fakhar Zaman . Tanzim Hasan Sakib made pressure over Pakistan claiming the 3rd wicket of Mohammad Haris (31) when scoreboard showing 53 for 3  in 6.3 overs Later, Pakistan scored 139 runs for 5 in 13.4 overs till filing this report. Football: Hamza, Shamit and Fahamedul feature in preliminary Bangladesh squad for two int'l matches Earlier, Bangladesh fielded the same team that played against UAE in the 3rd T20 in Sharjah last week. Bangladesh will play their remaining two T20 matches against Pakistan on May 30 and June 1, also at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore Bangladesh Pacer Mustafizur Rahman, opener Soumya Sarkar and Nahid Rana missed the series, first two for injury and Nahid Rana for personal reasons All rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Syed Khalid Ahmed replaced them. Pakistani celebrated bowler Shaheen Afridi given rest in the Bangladesh series while former captain Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were not considered for the series Pakistan team: Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Mohammad Haris,  Salman Agha (Captain) , Hasan Newaz, Shadab Khan, Khushfil Shah, Faheem Ashraf, Hassan Ali, Haris Rouf and Arbar Ahmed Bangladesh team: Tanzid Hasan, Parvez Hossain Emon, Litton Das (Captain), Towhid Hridoy, Mahedi Hasan, Jaker Ali, Shamim Hossain, Rishad Hossain, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Hasan Mahmud and Shoriful Islam.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru upstaged Rishabh Pant’s century and stormed into the Indian Premier League's qualifier 1 with a monumental six-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants on Tuesday. Bengaluru, needing a victory to avoid playing an eliminator against Mumbai Indians, cruised to 230-4 and became the first team in IPL history to win all its away games. Pant smashed unbeaten 118 off 61 balls with eight sixes and 11 fours in his first big knock of the season that carried Lucknow to a strong 227-3. Bengaluru will take on table-topper Punjab Kings on Thursday. Gujarat Titans slipped to No. 3 and will meet Mumbai in the eliminator on Friday. The loser of qualifier 1 gets another chance to have a crack at next Tuesday’s final in Ahmedabad when it plays the winner of eliminator on Sunday. Lucknow finished seventh. Sharma’s blitz stuns Lucknow Stand-in captain Jitesh Sharma’s blistering unbeaten 85 off just 33 balls that featured six sixes and eight fours propelled Bengaluru to chase down the tall target with eight balls to spare after Virat Kohli’s 54 off 30 balls had provided a brisk start. Kohli kickstarted the chase with four successive boundaries against Will O’Rourke in the second over after Phil Salt (30) had started the over with a crisp cover driven boundary against the New Zealand fast bowler. Despite Salt getting caught in the covers in the sixth over, Bengaluru finished the power play at a strong 66-1 with Kohli striking at better than run-a-ball. Bangladesh-Pakistan three-match T20 Series begins Wednesday in Lahore Pant turned back to O’Rourke soon after the power play and the fast bowler claimed the wickets of Rajat Patidar and Liam Livingstone off successive balls which brought Lucknow back into the game. Kohli raised raised his half-century off 27 balls with his 10th boundary when he hit Akash Singh through extra cover but left Bengaluru at 123-4 in the 12th over when he sliced a catch to long-off. But Mayank Agarwal (41 not out) and Sharma didn’t hold back with their aggressive batting and bludgeoned 107-run stand off 45 balls to cruise their team home with eight balls to spare. Agarwal smashed Akash Singh for three consecutive boundaries within the first five balls he faced while Sharma smashed six sixes and eight fours in his blazing unbeaten knock. O’Rourke ended up with most expensive bowling figures by a Lucknow bowler in the IPL when he finished with 2-74, conceding nine boundaries and four sixes. Pant finally scores big Pant’s long struggle with the bat this season finally ended when the left-hander smashed a century after Bengaluru’s stand-in captain Sharma had won the toss and elected to field. Pant, batting at No. 3, was at his best after Nuwan Thushara had clean bowled Matthew Breetzke (14) in the third over. Pant was quick out of his blocks and raised his half-century off 29 balls. Mitchell Marsh (67) brought up his sixth 50-plus score this season off 31 balls as he put on a strong 152-run stand off 78 balls with Pant. Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1-46) broke the threatening partnership in the 16th over when Marsh was caught behind but not before the Australian had smashed the fast bowler for two successive sixes. Pant reached his much-awaited century off 54 balls with a boundary off Kumar in the 18th over and celebrated it with a front-flip as Lucknow breached the 200-run mark. Punjab demolishes Mumbai and secures top-two spot in IPL playoffs Fast bowlers Yash Dayal (0-44) and Romario Shepherd (1-51) leaked further 26 runs in the final two overs with Shepherd getting the consolation wicket of Nicholas Pooran in the last over.

The three-match T20I series between hosts Pakistan and touring Bangladesh begins on Wednesday (May 28) at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The evening match between two teams will kick-off at 9 pm Bangladesh time. Bangladeshi sports channel T- Sports and Pakistani sports channel  Ten Sports and A Sports will telecast all  the matches live. Liton Das -led Bangladesh team will try their best to come back in the series forgetting their frustrating 1-2 series defeat against ICC Associate member and hosts United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the middle of this month despite winning the first match comfortably. BPL Football : Dhaka Abahani Ltd finish runners- up outplaying Brothers Union Club by 3-0 goal Bangladesh will play their remaining two T20 matches against Pakistan on May 30 and June 1, also at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The two teams faced each other on 19 occasions where Pakistan won 16 times and Bangladesh won the rest three matches. Bangladesh national team never beat Pakistan team since 2016 and Pakistan beat Bangladesh by five wickets in their last match in the T20 World Cup in Adelaide, Australia in 2022. Bangladesh Pacer Mustafizur Rahman and opener Soumya Sarkar missed the series due to injury and all rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz,and Syed Khalid Ahmed replaced them in the squad. Pakistani celebrated bowler Shaheen Afridi given rest in the Bangladesh series while former captain Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were not considered for series.

Punjab Kings secured a top-two spot in the Indian Premier League playoffs after dominating five-time winners the Mumbai Indians by seven wickets on Monday. Josh Inglis (73) and Priyansh Arya (62) smashed the Mumbai bowling and cruised Punjab to 187-3 in reply to Mumbai’s below-par 184-7. Punjab will play qualifier 1 on Thursday with the winner going directly to the June 3 final. Mumbai will play eliminator 1 on Friday against Royal Challengers Bengaluru or Gujarat Titans. Gujarat Titans are second in the table but could be overtaken by Bengaluru if it beats the already-eliminated Lucknow Super Giants on Tuesday. Inglis and Arya dominate Raza arrives just in time from England to lead Lahore to PSL title Arya and Inglis combined in for 109 runs off just 59 balls for Punjab after Prabhsimran Singh was dismissed by Jasprit Bumrah inside the batting powerplay. Arya hit Trent Boult for three boundaries off the first four balls he faced from the New Zealander. Arya raised his half-century from 27 balls when he hit Hardik Pandya for six over wide long-on and bashed Jasprit Bumrah for a six over fine leg. Inglis shrugged off the spin threat of Mitchell Santner, whose first two overs went for 23, while impact player Ashwani Kumar was dropped from the attack after being hammered for 16, in his only over. Santner finished with 2-41 when he had Arya caught at long-off in the 15th over, and Inglis was out lbw when he missed a paddle shot against the left-arm spinner in the 18th over with Punjab just 14 runs from victory. They won with nine balls to spare. Yadav feels Mumbai fell short Suryakumar Yadav’s 57, his 14th successive score of 25-plus in Twenty20s, was the cornerstone of Mumbai’s total but he felt his team was 10, 15 runs short. Ryan Rickelton, playing in his last IPL game before joining South Africa for the World Test Championship final, lashed a 20-ball 27, while Rohit Sharma struggled to 24 when he holed out to long-on against left-arm spinner Harpreet Brar. Mumbai stuttered in the middle overs when it lost Tilak Varma and Will Jacks quickly. Pandya grabbed two fours and two sixes in his 26 off 15 and was caught behind in Jansen’s return spell. Naman Dhir and Yadav counterpunched in the death overs and Vijaykumar Vyshak’s penultimate over of the innings went for 23 runs. Arshdeep Singh bowled splendid yorkers in the final over and conceded just three runs for the wickets of Dhir and Yadav.

Zimbabwe all-rounder Sikandar Raza flew in from England, arrived 10 minutes before the toss and went on to lead Lahore Qalandars to its third Pakistan Super League title in four years. Lahore's record successful chase on Sunday saw it beat Quetta Gladiators by six wickets with a ball to spare in a thrilling final. Raza had played in a test match against England at Nottingham which Zimbabwe lost by an innings on Saturday. He made a vital unbeaten 22 off seven deliveries on Sunday while Kusal Perera smashed a 31-ball 62 not out to carry Lahore to 204-4 in 19.5 overs after Quetta had chosen to bat first and scored 201-9. Quetta mystery spinners Abrar Ahmed (1-27) and Usman Tariq (1-38) had squeezed Lahore and when Raza arrived the home team still needed 57 runs off the final 20 balls. Not tired Raza showed no signs of fatigue after multiple flights to reach Lahore and smashed fast bowler Mohammad Amir for a four and a six off the first two balls he faced. With eight runs needed off Faheem Ashraf’s final three balls, Raza smacked the fast bowler over point for a six before hitting the winning boundary wide of mid-on. Mehidy gets BCB nod to play in PSL for Lahore Qalandars Earlier, Pakistan’s rising star T20 batter Hasan Nawaz smashed 76 off 43 and Ashraf (28) hit Salman Mirza for 23 runs off the final over to take Quetta past the 200-run mark. The fast bowling duo of captain Shaheen Shah Afridi (3-24) and Haris Rauf (2-41) pegged back Quetta in the death overs when they claimed four wickets in the space of two runs but Ashraf's late onslaught gave Quetta hope to claim its first PSL title in six years before Raza stole the show. Lahore won the PSL titles in 2022 and 2023 and with its third win equaled Islamabad United's record of three PSL titles.

Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman has been ruled out of the upcoming tour of Pakistan due to a finger injury sustained during the Indian Premier League, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB)confirmed in a statement on Sunday. The left-arm seamer suffered a clip fracture on his left thumb while playing his final IPL match.  According to BCB’s national team physio Delowar Hossain Siva, the injury will sideline Mustafizur for at least two weeks, with further assessment scheduled thereafter. “Mustafizur suffered a clip fracture on his left thumb while playing his last match of the Indian Premier League yesterday,” Siva said in the media release. “This injury requires a period of rest and rehabilitation. As per our current assessment, he will be unavailable for selection for the next two to three weeks. We will conduct a follow-up evaluation after two weeks to monitor his recovery progress,” he added In response to the injury, the national selectors have named right-arm pacer Khaled Ahmed as Mustafizur’s replacement for the tour. Khaled, who has featured for Bangladesh in both red-ball and white-ball formats, will now join the squad ahead of the three-match T20I series in Lahore starting later this month. Mustafizur’s absence is a bug blow, given his experience and recent form in the IPL, where he had a record-breaking performance for a Bangladeshi in the tournament.

 Real Madrid has confirmed that club legend Xabi Alonso is returning — this time as head coach — hailing him as "one of the best coaches in the world." Alonso will take charge starting June 1 on a contract running through June 2028, succeeding Carlo Ancelotti, who is leaving to manage Brazil’s national team. The Spanish club will officially unveil Alonso on Monday. Ancelotti, 65, bid farewell after four largely successful seasons, including three Champions League titles across both his spells. Despite beginning the season with a UEFA Super Cup victory, Madrid struggled overall — losing all four Clásico matches against Barcelona and finishing the campaign without another trophy. His early departure was confirmed Friday, though Brazil had already announced his appointment months prior. Ancelotti expressed confidence in Alonso, stating, “He has what it takes to coach this team. I wish him all the best.” Alonso, 43, returns to familiar territory, having played 236 matches for Real Madrid between 2009 and 2014. During his time as a player, he helped the club secure six major titles, including the long-awaited 10th Champions League crown in 2014. Real Madrid celebrated his appointment with a tribute video, calling his return “the greatest challenge any coach can face.” Alonso arrives fresh off a historic spell at Bayer Leverkusen. After taking over when the club was near the Bundesliga relegation zone in 2022, he led them to their first-ever Bundesliga and German Cup double last season — remaining unbeaten in the league. Their only loss of the 2023-24 campaign came in the Europa League final against Atalanta. “You didn’t just coach us — you inspired us,” said Leverkusen captain Granit Xhaka in a farewell message. As a player, Alonso was known for his tactical intelligence and vision, qualities that have translated into his coaching career. Before Leverkusen, he coached Real Madrid’s youth sides and Real Sociedad’s B team, achieving promotion with the latter. His new role brings steep expectations: restoring Madrid’s dominance in Spain and Europe amid a resurgent Barcelona led by young stars like Lamine Yamal, Pedri, and Gavi. He’ll also need to rejuvenate big na