Mohammedan suffer third consecutive defeat while Abahani keep on winning

Mohammedan Sporting Club suffered their third straight defeat in the ongoing Bangabandhu Dhaka Premier Division T20 Cricket League 2019/20. The Shakib Al Hasan-led side was beaten by Legends of Rupganj in the 36th match of the tournament by nine wickets on Thursday in Mirpur. Mohammedan are currently sixth in the points table. 

Batting first, Mohammedan lost their top four including skipper Shakib Al Hasan inside four overs and were staring down the barrel at 11 for four. Shakib went for a duck and now holds the dubious record of scoring the most number of ducks in T20 cricket as a Bangladeshi batter (20).

Wickets continued to fall as Mohammedan found themselves in deep trouble at 27 for six in the 10th over. But they found a savior in Shuvagata Hom whose belligerent 32-ball-52 helped them post a respectable total of 113 for nine after 20 overs. Shuvagata struck one four and five sixes.

For Rupganj, Sohag Gazi, Mohammad Shahid, Naeem Islam, and Qazi Onik picked up two wickets apiece.

In reply, Rupganj comfortably reached the target with 11 deliveries remaining thanks to an excellent opening partnership between Pinak Ghosh and Mehedi Maruf. Maruf was dismissed in the 14th over on 41 but Pinak stayed unbeaten till the end and in the process scored a half-century. 

Unlike their arch-rivals, Abahani continued their dominance in the tournament, beating Shinepukur Cricket Club by 25 runs (D/L method). With five wins out of six matches, Abahani are currently leading the table with 10 points. 

Shinepukur were to chase 149 in 17 overs but they fell short by 25 runs. Mohammad Saifuddin shone with the ball, bagging a three-for.

For Abahani, openers Naim Sheikh and Afif Hossain starred with the bat. Their 111-run stand for the first wicket powered Abahani to 183 for five. Naim made 70 off 50 while Afif scored 54. 

Tanvir Islam, the left-arm spinner for Shinepukur, was impressive again, picking up a four-wicket haul. He is now the highest wicket-taker in the tournament.

Earlier in the day, Tamim Iqbal's Prime Bank beat Prime Doleshwar by just three runs in an absolute thriller at BKSP-3. Doleshwar never looked like getting close to the target of 152. They needed 31 off the last over with no. 10 batter Kamrul Islam Rabbi on strike. But he gave Prime Bank a real scare by hitting four sixes in that over, three of them on the trot. He needed to clear the boundary in the last ball but couldn't get more than a single. Rabbi stayed unbeaten of 38 off just 12 balls. This was the third-highest score by a no. 10 batter in T20 cricket.