Saturday, November 23, 2024

Nafis carries BU thru’

PCL T20 Chittagong 2009
Nafis carries BU thru’
Local boy Nafis Iqbal led from the front to steer Brothers Union to the final of the Habib Group PCL Twenty20 tournament in the exciting first semifinal where they beat Dada Warriors by six wickets at the MA Aziz Stadium here yesterday.
Batting first, Dada Warriors scored 170 for 5 and in reply, Brothers reached the target in 19.4 overs losing six wickets.
Nafis, who remained unbeaten on 70, swept left-arm spinner Arafat Sunny’s first ball of the final over to the square leg fence. He then picked up a single, leaving batting partner Rezaul Karim to score three runs from four balls. Left-hander Rezaul leveled the score with two runs pushed to midwicket and scampered the winning single off the fourth delivery. Delirious scenes erupted as Nafis, aided by a runner almost throughout his innings, snapped back to form with seven boundaries in his 56-ball knock after having scored just 40 runs from three previous matches.
“My focus before start of the daunting chase was to stay at the crease till the end of the match because it was my firm belief that as long as I would be there, we can win the match. I’m very happy now that the strategy has clicked nicely,” an elated Nafis told the reporters after receiving the man-of-the-match prize.
Abdur Razzak added a valuable 13-ball 19 while Sri Lankan Chamara Kapugedara also contributed with an 18-ball 29 cameo. But Kapugedera’s countryman Jehan Mubarak scored just eight.
Dada could single out Rubel Hossain’s 18th over as the turning point as the slinger conceded 17 runs including three wides and a no-ball that saw the ‘free hit’ smacked to the boundary. The national paceman was the most expensive bowler of the day, giving up 54 runs from his four overs.
But Dada’s start could not have predicted such a disastrous ending after their openers Zunaed Siddiqui and Saeed Anwar Jr added 116 runs for the opening stand in just 13.1 overs. Left-handed Zunaed kept up his good form, hitting six sixes and as many boundaries in his chancy 50-ball 77.
The innings was terminated in Younus’s first over, fourteenth of the innings, when Kapugedera caught Zunaed. Four balls later, Anwar was caught behind off the same bowler for a run-a-ball 33. The two had added 108 for the opening stand against Pirates of Chittagong only the day before.
Younus, who took a hattrick with 3 for 17 against Top Sports on Wednesday, took his third wicket when he took a stunning return catch off Kashif Naveed. The Pakistani all-rounder smashed one straight but Younus’s bucket-like hands snaffled up the half-chance.
Gleeful Brothers Union secretary Mohammad Elias announced a Dhaka-Kuala Lumpur return air ticket for two and another well-wisher Siraj Ullah declared a prize of 500 dollars for Nafis.

BRIEF SCORES
DADA WARRIORS: 170-5 in 20 overs (Anwar 33, Zunaed 77, Faisal 20, Imran 4, Kashif 19, Arafat 3*, Kamrul 4*; Younus 3-14).
BROTHERS UNION: 171-6 in 19.4 overs (Mubarak 8, Nafis Iqbal 70*, Mehrab 4, Tushar 10, Kapugedara 29, Razzak 19, Dollar 3, Rezaul 13*; Anwar 1-18, Kashif 2-30, Arafat 1-34, Kamrul 1-32).
Result: Brothers Union won by four wickets.
Man-of-the-match: Nafis Iqbal.

Courtesy of The Daily Star

Related News

BCB announces U-19 team for Asia Cup

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The Bangladesh Cricket Board on Thursday announced the squad for the ACC Under-19 Men’s Asia Cup, which will be held in the UAE from November 29 to December 8. Azizul Hakim Tamim will be leading the side that will depart for the UAE on November 24. Ahead of the event, the ... Read more

Tigers start tour to West Indies with first Test match today

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh begins their tour of the West Indies today with the first Test match of the two-match Test series at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua. Fans can watch the live broadcast on T Sports starting at 8:00 pm Bangladesh time. Bangladesh come into the series on the back of consecutive ... Read more

West Indies announce team for Bangladesh Tests

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Cricket West Indies (CWI) unveiled the West Indies Test squad for the highly anticipated two-match series against Bangladesh starting November 22. Led by Kraigg Brathwaite, the Windies squad features an exciting mix of seasoned, in-form players and fresh talent. Justin Greaves is performing well and has excelled in the domestic white-ball ... Read more

Imrul says goodbye to red-ball cricket

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Former Bangladesh opener Imrul Kayes has declared his retirement from Test cricket as well as first class cricket. He shared the news In a video message posted on social media on Wednesday afternoon. Having made his debut in 2008 in ODIs, Imrul was quickly drafted into Bangladesh Test team and represented ... Read more

BPL season 11 to start on Dec 30

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The Bangladesh Premier League’s 11th edition will begin on December 30. The first match will have the reigning champions Fortune Barishal going up against the new team Durbar Rajshahi, at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. The final is scheduled to be played on February 7, 2025, in Mirpur, as the BCB revealed ... Read more

Noman Ali named ICC Players of the Month for October 2024

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced Pakistan spinner Noman Ali as the ICC Men’s Player of the Month for October 2024. The player won following a vote conducted among global fans registered at icc-cricket.com and a specialist panel comprising ICC Hall of Famers, former international players, and media representatives, a statement ... Read more

Bangladesh loses series to Afghanistan once more

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh lost the three-match ODI series to Afghanistan after a five-wicket defeat in the series deciding final game at Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Monday. Opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz struck a scintillating century and Azamatullah Omarzai put up a stellar all-round performance to sink Bangladesh and help Afghanistan win its second straight bilateral ... Read more

Salahuddin appointed senior assistant coach of Bangladesh

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has appointed Mohammad Salahuddin as the senior assistant coach of the Bangladesh men’s cricket team. Salahuddin’s contract will be on the role until March 15, 2025, BCB press release confirmed on Tuesday. Salah Uddin has experience with the national setup, as he was the Assistant and ... Read more

Bangladesh women to play three ODIs, T20Is against Ireland

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The Bangladesh women’s cricket team will play three ODIs and as many T20Is against Ireland in a home series, starting November 27 at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced the itinerary for the series on Sunday. The visitors, who will arrive on November 22, will play ... Read more

Olly Stone dashes home from Pakistan tour to get married

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Olly Stone is set to fly back to England from the Pakistan tour on Wednesday for his wedding, making his participation in the second Test unlikely. With the match scheduled just days after his wedding, Stone’s return in time to be considered for selection is uncertain. Though the exact date of ... Read more

Mahmudullah to retire from T20Is after India series

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Veteran all-rounder Mahmudullah has announced that he will retire from the T20 Internationals after the ongoing series against India. The 39-year all-rounder made this announcement at a press conference prior to the second T20I against India in Delhi on Tuesday. Mahmudullah has played 139 T20Is for Tigers which is the highest ... Read more

Mahmudullah Riyad set to retire from T20I cricket

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh have played 177 T20Is and Mahmudullah Riyad has been part of 140 of them. The veteran cricketer is now expected to announce a decision to bring the curtain down on his T20I career. Riyad is set to make an announcement, which could even be due in today’s pre-match press conference ... Read more

Sanath Jayasuriya named full-time head coach of Sri Lankan cricket team

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Sanath Jayasuriya has officially been named the head coach of the Sri Lanka national cricket team, stepping up from his interim role that he held since June. His appointment comes in the wake of Chris Silverwood’s resignation following Sri Lanka’s disappointing performance in the recent T20 World Cup. At 55 years ... Read more

Tigresses batting struggle lead to defeat against England in women’s T20 World Cup

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh Women’s team suffered a 21-run defeat against England Women in the sixth match of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 at Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Sharjah on Saturday. Earlier, Nigar Sultana Joty’s Tigresses ended their 16-match losing streak in the mega event after taking down debutants Scotland. Against Heather Knight’s ... Read more

Nahida Akter becomes first Bangladesh woman to take 100 wickets in WT20Is

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Nahida Akter has become the first Bangladesh woman to take 100 wickets in Twenty20 Internationals, as her side secured a 16-run victory over Scotland in their ICC Women’s T20 World Cup opener in Sharjah today. The left-arm spinner, who took the final wicket of the match, reached the milestone in her ... Read more

Tigers secure historic Test sweep over Pakistan, win series 2-0

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh has carved out a remarkable achievement in cricket, securing 2-0 Test series win against Pakistan on their own soil. Tigers completed 2-0 clean sweep over Pakistan with a six-wicket win in the second and final Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium today. This is the first time the Tigers have ... Read more

Women’s T20 World Cup set to move from Bangladesh to UAE

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com The ICC Women’s T20 World Cup is likely to be moved from Bangladesh to the UAE, according to indications from the recent International Cricket Council Board meeting, which took place virtually on Tuesday, reports Cricbuzz. The tournament is scheduled from October 3 to 20. That the global event cannot be played ... Read more

Gautam Gambhir named India head coach

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Star of India’s title-winning campaign in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2011, former opener Gautam Gambhir has been named as the new head coach of the India men’s cricket team. He will take over from Rahul Dravid after a successful ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 campaign. The 42-year-old’s most ... Read more

T20 World Cup: India end 11-year-drought for ICC crown after Barbados thriller

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com India came back from behind to beat South Africa by seven runs in the final and become the unbeaten champions of the T20 World Cup 2024 at Kensington Oval in Barbados on Saturday. It was the first time a team won the tournament without losing a single game. It was South ... Read more

ICC punishes Tanzim Sakib for ‘inappropriate physical contact’ against Nepal captain in T20 World Cup

Sports Desk : dhakamirror.com Bangladesh seamer Tanzim Hasan Sakib has been fined 15 percent of his match fee for his code of conduct violation on Sunday, the International Cricket Council (ICC) stated in a press release. The incident took place in the third over of the Nepal chase, where amidst a spirited spell Tanzim had ... Read more