Iftikhar ton powers Barishal to 238-4

Fortune Barishal all-rounder Iftikhar Ahmed took the Rangpur Riders bowlers to cleaners as he smashed a 45-ball century in a 192-run stand with Shakib Al Hasan as Barishal posted the joint second-highest team total in Bangladesh Premier League history at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram on Thursday.

It was raining sixes at the ZACS as a total of 19 sixes were hit of which nine were smashed by Iftikhar and Shakib, who notched up his highest-ever T20 score of 89 off 43 balls, hit six.

Iftikhar's ton was the third of the BPL 2023, with two of them coming in the same match between Khulna Tigers and Chattogram Challengers where Khulna's Azam Khan scored 109 off 57 in the first innings and while chasing, Chattogram's Usman Khan upstaged his compatriot with a 58-ball 103.

Rangpur Riders hold the record for the highest-ever BPL team total. They posted 239-4 against Chittagong Vikings in the 2019 edition.