END OF OVER:20 | 10 Runs 1 Wkt | SYS: 171/8 (41 runs required, RR: 8.55)
- Kamrul Islam4 (5b)
- Taskin Ahmed4-0-31-3
- Subashis Roy2-0-30-0
This has been among the BPL's highest-scoring matches this year. That's been a rarity, with sluggish pitches being the flavour of the season. For large parts of the chase, this match promised to be a lot more exciting and a lot tighter, but that wasn't to be. On that note, I take your leave. We hope you had fun on this night of six-hitting. Be back for more tomorrow. Goodbye and goodnight!
10.33pm How quickly a match can turn around? Sylhet looked like they would chase this down at the end of the Powerplay. At the halfway mark, they were still well on course. And then things went horribly wrong. They lost their two set batsmen, Andre Fletcher and Babar Azam, in successive overs, and from there unravelled pretty rapidly. There were no other heroes for them on this night. And at long last, Chittagong get another win, a well-deserved one achieved on the back of a power-packed career-best effort from Sikandar Raza. He played one of the finest T20 innings I have seen in recent times. Sylhet need to brush off this defeat and get back on track quickly as the race to the playoffs gets tighter.
"We have three matches to go, and I will look to win those matches," says Nasir Hossain, Sylhet captain.
"The batters just put up a terrific performance," says Chittagong captain Luke Ronchi. "Sikandar Raza was unfortunate to miss out on a hundred but that was an unbelievable innings. The middle period was crucial for us as Sylhet lost their way a little bit. The spinners did a fantastic job. We tried to change it up so they wouldn't get a rhythm going. We just need to keep playing like we did tonight and pick up as many wins as possible."
Sikandar Raza is Man of the Match. "I wasn't disappointed with whenever I got out. Every time I go out to bat, I try and do my best for my team and play the way the situation needs me to and today was no different," he says. "Staan van Zyl batted outstandingly and he wasin fact the reason we got that partnership going. I certainly surprised myself with some of the shots I played. It's just one of those things, when it comes together it comes together. Whatever the situation and whenever you want me to go out there, I try to do my best. There are few things that are not in my control, but I just try to play as honestly as I can."
Nurul Hasan c Reece b Taskin Ahmed 28 (16b 1x4 2x6) SR: 175.00
END OF OVER:19 | 13 Runs | SYS: 161/7 (51 runs required from 6 balls, RR: 8.47, RRR: 51.00)
- Nurul Hasan20 (12b)
- Kamrul Islam2 (3b)
- Subashis Roy2-0-30-0
- Taskin Ahmed3-0-21-2
Even that won't do now.
Sylhet need a six off every ball now.
END OF OVER:18 | 6 Runs 1 Wkt | SYS: 148/7 (64 runs required from 12 balls, RR: 8.22, RRR: 32.00)
- Nurul Hasan8 (8b)
- Kamrul Islam1 (1b)
- Taskin Ahmed3-0-21-2
- Stiaan van Zyl2-0-14-2
Nasir Hossain c Subashis Roy b Taskin Ahmed 8 (4b 0x4 1x6) SR: 200.00
END OF OVER:17 | 11 Runs | SYS: 142/6 (70 runs required from 18 balls, RR: 8.35, RRR: 23.33)
- Nurul Hasan4 (4b)
- Nasir Hossain8 (3b)
- Stiaan van Zyl2-0-14-2
- Soumya Sarkar3-0-17-2