The race for the Dhaka Premier League title is wide open after the first phase came to an end with Prime Doleshwar’s 79-run win over Kalabagan Cricket Academy at Mirpur on Thursday.
Led by half-centuries from England’s Joshua Cobb (69) and Bangladesh cricketer Sohag Gazi (58), Prime Doleshwar posted 252-9 in 50 overs before Kalabagan were bundled out for 173 in 46.1 overs.
The Super League will feature the top six teams – Gazi Tank Cricketers, Prime Doleshwar, Mohammedan SC, Prime Bank, Kalabagan Cricket Academy and either Brothers Union or Sheikh Jamal – and will get underway as soon as the current political climate allows the CCDM to confirm the fixtures.
The points table at the end of the first phase reflects the league’s competitiveness, as three teams finished tied with 14 points.
Gazi Tanks, Mohammedan and Prime Doleshwar lead the pack, though Gazi Tanks are on top due to a superior net run-rate.
Prime Bank occupy fourth position with 12 points, while Brothers and Kalabagan are in fifth and sixth respectively with 11 points each, with Brothers ahead on net run-rate.
However, one controversy remains to be taken care of.
Sheikh Jamal, down in seventh with 10 points, are claiming a place in the Super League at the expense of Brothers, asserting that the latter illegally fielded left-arm spinner Sohrawardi Shuvo in their game on November 9 despite being given a one-game ban for inappropriate behaviour after the game against Abahani Limited on November 7.
The CCDM on Thursday said that both Brothers and Sheikh Jamal will face off in a one-off qualifier to determine who will progress to the Super Eight.
All the teams are in with a fighting chance of attaining glory in the country’s lone limited-over competition, as none of the teams managed to distance themselves from the field in the first phase.
For the very first time in the competition’s history, the clubs had chosen the cricketers on a player-by-choice system that decreased the superiority of some teams over the others.
Some clubs were unable to get the players they wanted due to this new system and that ensured almost all of the teams were at par with each other.
The player-by-choice system was based on a lottery, with each team getting the opportunity to bid for every player available.
The system, controversial in some quarters, will however be scratched next season in favour of the original system, where clubs secure players independently after agreeing to personal terms.
Keeping the Super League in mind, the qualifying teams will look to strengthen their respective squads, and joint-leaders Gazi Tanks have already stolen a march on their rivals by confirming the services of two dependable limited-overs international cricketers – Irish-born Englishman Eoin Morgan and the Netherlands’ Ryan ten Doeschate.
With a busy international calendar awaiting Bangladesh next year, the Super League will help to provide adequate match-practice for the national cricketers.
Sri Lanka are scheduled to tour Bangladesh in January-February, the Asia Cup is supposed to be held from February-March, and the ICC World Twenty20 is slated for March-April.
-With New Age input
