DPL painted Sky Blue again

Abahani players and officials broke out into wild celebrations after Tanjim Ahmed struck the runs that clinched the club's 22nd Dhaka Premier League (DPL) title following a four-wicket win over defending champions Sheikh Jamal in the final round of Super League games in Mirpur yesterday.

It was Abahani's fifth title since the DPL received List A status in the 2013-14 season and the fact that no other team has managed to win more than once only reflected the giants' domination.

Their winning spree was halted by Sheikh Jamal last season as they pipped the Abahani to the DPL title, but the Sky Blues got sweet revenge in what had emerged as a virtual final to decide the fate of the prestigious tournament yesterday.

Left-hander Naim Sheikh concluded a terrific season for Abahani by finishing as the tournament's leading run-getter. He hit his tenth 50-plus knock to finish with 932 runs in 16 games while another prolific run-getter, Anamul Haque, also scored a fifty in the title-deciding encounter to finish second in the list with 834 runs.

Naim and Anamul combined for a 145-run opening stand which lay the platform for Abahani after Sheikh Jamal posted 283 courtesy of skipper Nurul Hasan Sohan's unbeaten 89.

Afif Hossain, who is looking to make a comeback to the national fold, played a crucial unbeaten 60-run knock that guided Abahani over the line with five balls to spare.

"Obviously it feels good to become champions. That was our target from the start. Our openers have given us good starts throughout the tournament and that made things easy for us," Afif told media after the game yesterday.

With the World Cup knocking on the door, Afif, who was dropped from the national team for the home series against Ireland following a prolonged lean patch, said he was focusing on the present and not thinking about the future or talk of making World Cup squad.

"I don't like to think much; I only try to focus on my game. I didn't get any messages or have any chat with anyone. I don't like to have any expectations. I try to focus on the present. I have nothing more to say about this topic."

Meanwhile, Abahani head coach and former captain Khaled Mahmud Sujon believed quite a few performers in the DPL had made strong statements as they seek comebacks to the national side.

"You can talk about [Mahmudullah] Riyad or the way Afif played this season. Then there is Sohan, who also played well. There are also players like [Anamul Haque] Bijoy and Naim, so it's a healthy competition which will certainly help our team to become stronger," said Mahmud.

Highlights

With 932 runs, including 10 fifties and a century, in 16 games at an average of 71.69, Naim Sheikh was the leading run-getter of the DPL this season.

Sheikh Jamal's Indian recruit Parvez Rasool was the leading wicket-taker with 33 scalps at an average of 17.93.