Abahani Limited secured their 22nd top-level title at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Saturday as they beat Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club by four wickets in their final match of the 2023 Dhaka Premier League.
This is Abahani’s fifth title since the inauguration of the Dhaka Premier League. They had won the title three times in a row before the last time, which Sheikh Jamal had taken home.
On Saturday, it was a face-off for the title as whoever between Abahani and Sheikh Jamal won the match would win the title.
Batting first, Sheikh Jamal posted 282-7, courtesy of skipper Nurul Hasan Sohan’s unbeaten 89, alongside Taibur Rahman’s 53, Parvez Rasool’s 42, and a 14-ball cameo from Ziaur Rahman, which brought 29 runs.
In reply, Abahani had another brilliant start as their openers, Anamul Haque (72) and Mohammad Naim (68), added 145 runs for the opening wicket.
However, the duo was gone in the span of nine deliveries, and soon, Abahani were 92 runs away but four wickets down.
Afif Hossain then took charge and scored an unbeaten 60 off 53 balls to guide his team to the title, with Tanzim Hasan Sakib hitting the winning boundary to seal the victory with four balls to go.
