Comilla Victorians 186 for 7 (Tamim 73, Anamul 40, Junaid 4-32) beat Khulna Titans 181 for 7 (Junaid Siddique 70, Afridi 3-35) by three wickets
Comilla Victorians defeated Khulna Titans by three wickets in their BPL match at Sylhet International Cricket Stadium Friday (Jan 18).
Comilla captain Tamim Iqbal was the undisputed game changer as he smashed 73 runs off 42 balls, laced with a dozen fours and a six, to give his side the perfect start in their chase of a tough target of 182. The Tamim-Anamul Haque opening partnership scored 115 in 12 overs before Tamim got out in the first ball of the 13th over.
Tamim’s commanding innings set the tone for Comilla to chase down the total. Chasing 182, Comilla reached their target with two balls to spare.
Eight runs were needed in the last over, while six were required from the final four deliveries. Comilla’s Thisara Perera took four balls to clinch victory.
Earlier, Khulna posted a challenging total on a good batting wicket in Sylhet. They managed to score 181 for the loss of seven wickets. Opener Junaid Siddique was the top-scorer for his side with an innings of 70 off 41 balls, featuring four boundaries and as many over boundaries.
Khulna gave a chance to young batsman Al Amin in the playing XI, and the youngster played an impressive innings of 32 off 19 balls with four fours and a sixer.
The six he smashed against Perera off the fourth ball of the fourth over was probably the shot of the innings. The ball was in the trajectory of the middle-leg stump; Al Amin shuffled and played a lofted flick for a maximum.
Comilla’s in-form all-rounder Shahid Afridi bowled well in the middle stages, and took three crucial wickets for his team. He cleaned up Al Amin off the very first ball he bowled in the match. Later, he bowled Khulna skipper Mahmudullah in his second over to halt Khulna’s charge. Ariful, Shanto manage to score 13 off last 12 balls
Khulna were cruising confidently towards 200, riding on opener Junaid’s brilliant performance. The left-hander scored 70 off 41 deliveries before being caught short of the crease in the 16th over. Khulna also lost the wicket of Dawid Malan and Carlos Brathwaite in the next two overs.
So Ariful Haque and Nazmul Hossain Shanto were the last two recognised batsmen for Khulna. But they managed to score 13 off the last 12 balls. Shanto particularly struggled as he scored one off five balls at that moment.
Comilla are now second with eight points from six matches, while Khulna are languishing at the bottom with two points from six games.
Player of the match: Tamim Iqbal (Comilla Victorians)
