Jahurul wins it for Dhaka Dynamites

He may not be one of the big names in the Dhaka Dynamites outfit which boasts international stars such as Shahid Afridi and Sunil Naran, however it Rajshahi-born Jahurul Islam who remained in the end and won Dhaka Dynamites an exciting match against Khulna Titans.

The 30-year old saw off the chase with a brilliant 39-ball 45 after a thunderous knock from Keiron Pollard brought Dhaka Dynamites back into the game.

The Dynamites were in early trouble as they lost Evin Lewis and Shahid Afridi within the first two overs.

One of the highlights of the innings was Mahmudullah’s diving catch running back to the boundary to remove Sunil Narine as Dynamites lost four wickets for just 24 runs. Jofra Archer removed Cameron Delport with a wonderful delivery but Dynamites skipper Shakib started his innings brightly with two exquisite drives off the bowler. However, Shakib tried to hit a ball from Khulna captain Mahmudullah towards mid-on and fell in the eighth over. It was at that point with Dhaka tottering at four for 41 that Pollard took the game to the Titans.

In the 11th over, Kevin Pollard took Mahmudullah to the cleaners, hitting four cleanly struck sixes that infused hope among the Dynamites fans. Pollard reached 40 off just 15 deliveries as he hit Brathwaite for consecutive four’s off the first two deliveries of the 13th over but he decided that he was not finished yet as he hit his fellow countryman for two huge sixes off the fourth and sixth delivery of the over to bring up his fifty in just 19 deliveries. Shaifiul Islam, who had earlier got the wicket of Shahid Afridi then took the scalp of Pollard, who skied a delivery that eventually came down and was caught by wicket-keeper Dhiman Ghosh. Pollard hit three four's and six sixes in his 24-ball 55.

Jahurul meanwhile batted calmly and picked up the singles and the twos to keep the scoreboard ticking. He took charge when Pollard left and started picking up the odd boundary with some clever shots. With three overs remaining, Dynamites needed a further 27 runs.

In the 19th over, the duo picked up thirteen runs with both Mossaddek and Jahurul picking up boundaries off Abu Jayed.

The last over saw Dhaka requiring six from six deliveries but Mossaddek missed the first two deliveries of the over and the pressure was back on. With four runs required from two deliveries, Jahurul invented a reverse scoop off a Brathwaite full length delivery and the ball went to the boundary through third man which clinched victory for the Dynamites.

Earlier, a sensational innings from West Indies player Carlos Brathwaite allowed Khulna Titans to post 156 runs on the board for the loss of five wickets against Shakib Al Hasan’s Dhaka Dynamites.

Having won the toss, the Dhaka captain chose to bowl first and the decision seemed to pay dividends early on as Dhaka bowlers put the pressure on the Khulna batsmen with some tidy bowling. Shakib got the first breakthrough when he removed Michael Klinger in the fourth over as Titans failed to break loose.

At the end of the first ten overs of play, Khulna were 47 for three and soon in the 13th over skipper Mahmudullah Riyad fell to Shahid Afridi as he tried a reverse sweep but only managed to glove it to the wicket-keeper.

Rilee Rossouw had been holding up one end when Carlos Brathwaite joined him at the crease. The West Indian saw off a few deliveries before he took to smashing the bowlers all around the park. Rossouw contributed with a 30-ball 34.

It was Braithwaite’s  innings which allowed Titans to pile up 77 runs in the last six overs. The 29-ball 64 knock from Brathwaite four four’s and six sixes. In the 15th over he hit Afridi for two massive sixes to announce his intentions and in the next over Shakib conceded 17 runs as Brathwaite hit him for a four, a six and then another four in three successive deliveries. Rossou

Brathwaite reached his 50 off just 25 deliveries when he hit Sunil Narine 13 runs in the 19th over. In the final over of the innings he got stuck into Abu Hider, hitting him for two massive sixes as Titans finished on a high after a slow start.

Dhaka's four-wicket victory sees them top the table with three victories from four games in the BPL 2017.