Fortune Barishal managed a big total of 194-7 in their first match of the ninth edition of the Bangladesh Premier League on Saturday but that proved to be insufficient as Sylhet Strikers pulled off a brilliant chase to win the game by six wickets with an over in hand.
This is the third-highest chase in the history of BPL, and Sylhet must thank the Barishal fielders for that as they displayed an exhibition of misfielding throughout the Sylhet innings, following Sylhet’s similar display beforehand.
The biggest beneficiary of Sylhet’s misfields was Shakib Al Hasan, who smashed 67 off 32 balls after getting two let-offs.
His innings helped Barishal post a commendable 194-7, and when Sylhet lost opener Colin Ackermann in the first over courtesy of some lacklustre running from the Dutch batter, it seemed like Barishal had the clear upper hand.
But a 101-run stand off 68 balls from Najmul Hossain Shanto and Towhid Hridoy, both of whom were handed lives by the Barishal fielders.
Hridoy was on nine when Haider Ali dropped him, and Najmul was let off twice as he was dropped on 26 by Syed Khaled Ahmed and then on 32 by Iftikhar Ahmed.
After Shanto was run out on 48 off 40 balls following a miscommunication with Hridoy, which left them both stranded at the same end, Zakir Hasan came in and played a brilliant innings, where he took the momentum completely in Sylhet’s favour.
He could have been out for 13 too, but Mehidy Hasan Miraz, the Barishal skipper for the day, dropped him at mid-off, and the left-handed batter took full toll.
Zakir played 18 balls, and in those, he smashed four fours and three sixes to score 43, an innings which decided the fate of the match.
Contribution was there from Mushfiqur Rahim too, who sent the first two balls of his innings to the fence, and two more in the next four.
He stayed unbeaten on 23 off 11 balls with Thisara Perera, who smoked Khaled for back-to-back sixes in the penultimate over of the innings to end the innings as the Sri Lankan stayed unbeaten on 20 off nine balls.
