Having lost their previous match on the last ball, Noakhali couldn’t even put up a fight this time, as Rajshahi cruised to an effortless victory.
Making his debut in the tournament, Ripon Mondol immediately made an impact with the ball. With a career-best performance, he played a crucial role in restricting Noakhali Express to a low total. Once again, Noakhali, who had lost their previous match in the final delivery, couldn’t challenge Rajshahi Warriors, who claimed a comfortable win.
In the second match of Monday’s BPL fixtures, Nazmul Hossain Shanto’s side secured a 6-wicket victory.
At Sylhet International Stadium, Rajshahi bowlers laid the foundation for victory by restricting Noakhali to 124 on a green pitch.
Ripon picked up 4 wickets for just 13 runs in 4 overs, earning the Man of the Match award. The 22-year-old pacer’s previous best bowling figures were 4 wickets for 24 runs.
No partnership from Noakhali even touched thirty. Aside from Hyder Ali’s 33 off 28 balls, no other batsman made a significant contribution.
Two effective 50+ partnerships guided Rajshahi to the target with 13 balls to spare.
This was Rajshahi’s second win in three matches. They had lost the second match after starting their campaign with a victory, while Noakhali has now lost all three games.
After winning the toss, Rajshahi chose to bowl. Tanzeem Hasan’s erratic bowling leaked 18 runs in the first over. In the second over, the Sri Lankan pacer Binura Fernando dismissed Habibur Rahman Sohan with a return catch.
The aggressive batsman Sohan has struggled in the first three matches, scoring 15, 0, and 5.
In the third over, Ripon conceded only 5 runs despite giving away a boundary on his first delivery. In his next over during the powerplay, he claimed his first wicket when Sabbir Hossain mis-timed a shot over mid-on and was caught by Sahibzada Farhan. The remaining five balls of the over produced no runs.
Opener Maz Sadakat started well but couldn’t anchor the innings. In the eighth over, his compatriot Hussain Talat dismissed him for 25 off 19 balls.
Noakhali managed only 59 runs for 3 wickets in the first 10 overs, and the innings failed to pick up momentum in the next 10 overs.
After hitting a six off Tanzeem, Mahidul Islam was dismissed on the next ball for 22 off 27. In the same over, Zakir Ali fell caught off an outside off-stump delivery.
Ripon returned in the 16th over for his second spell, picking up two more wickets for just 1 run. He bowled Rezaur Rahman Raja clean bowled with a brilliant delivery and trapped Hasan Mahmud in the long-on after a lofted shot.
Hyder, who had been holding Noakhali together, was dismissed by Ripon in his final over. The Pakistan batsman was caught at the boundary after attempting a slog-sweep, with the over conceding 7 runs.
Chasing a modest target, Rajshahi had a shaky start. Sahibzada was bowled in the first over after attempting a risky shot.
Recovering from the early setback, Tanzeed Hasan and Shanto formed an aggressive partnership to steer Rajshahi ahead. Tanzeed hit a six over fine leg, while Mehdi Rana, who took a hat-trick in the previous match, was targeted for two fours in the same over.
Shanto, the centurion from the first match, smashed a six in Raja’s over but was dismissed for 24 off 20 balls. The partnership of 65 runs came off 38 balls.
In the next over, Tanzeed fell for 29 off 20 balls, bowled by Jahir Khan, while Hussain Talat was also dismissed cheaply by Hasan.
Despite briefly threatening a comeback by taking three wickets in three overs, Noakhali couldn’t do much afterward.
Responsible batting by Mushfiqur Rahim and Yasir Ali Chowdhury guided Rajshahi to the winning target. Mushfiq scored 28 off 30 with a six, while Yasir added 23 off 26 with a four and a six.
Brief Score
- Noakhali Express: 20 overs – 124/8 (Sohan 5, Sadakat 25, Sabbir 6, Mahidul 22, Hyder 33, Zakir 6, Raja 1, Hasan 0, Bilal 1*, Mehdi Rana 11*; Tanzeem 4-0-31-2, Binura 4-0-23-1, Ripon 4-1-13-4, Nawaz 1-0-17-0, Talat 3-0-18-1, Murad 3-0-18-0)
- Rajshahi Warriors: 17.5 overs – 125/4 (Sahibzada 2, Tanzeed 29, Shanto 24, Mushfiq 28*, Talat 3, Yasir 23*; Hasan 4-0-19-2, Bilal 2-0-25-0, Raja 2-0-24-1, Mehdi Rana 3-0-21-0, Jahir 3.5-0-20-1, Sadakat 3-0-11-0)
Result: Rajshahi won by 6 wickets
Man of the Match: Ripon Mondol
