BPL 2017, Qualifier 1 Review: Dhaka Dynamites soar through to the finals

Dhaka Dynamites performed admirably in Friday’s encounter to seal their spot in the finale of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) 2017. The crowd was in for a treat as the qualifier went in favour of the home team and how! Table-toppers until now, Comilla Victorians lived to see another day as they’ll now have to fight it out against the Rangpur Riders in Sunday’s second Qualifier to be able to play in the final game.

Having called favourably at the flip of the coin, Dhaka skipper, Shakib Al Hasan opted to bat first at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka. Shakib sure knew what he was doing batting first, his team performed exactly he would have hoped. Apart from the lone failure of the opener, Mehedi Maruf (6), the Dhaka team came out all guns blazing at the opposition. While opener, Evin Lewis scored 47 runs off 32 deliveries, Joe Denly looked in superb touch for the 32 runs before being unceremoniously run-out.

Kieron Pollard stole the show with his scintillating knock worth 31 runs off 18 balls and it was the eternal class of Shahid Afridi (30) that provided him with able support. Although wickets did fall at regular intervals, it wasn’t a barrier strong enough to halt the Dhaka’s batting juggernaut as they registered a mammoth total of 191/7 on the board at the end of 20 overs. Pacer, Hasan Ali was the pick of the bowlers amongst the Comilla ranks as he bagged 3 scalps at the cost of just 16 runs in his quota of 4 overs.

Victorians fall apart like a pack of cards

In the faceoff Dhaka’s gargantuan total, Comilla Victorians failed miserably and then some more. The team was unable to even reach the three-figure mark, bearing testimony to how poorly they fared in the crucial game. The opener, Tamim Iqbal was the only one with a commendable performance as he scores 31 runs off 28 balls. The rest of the batting flailed at the hands of the Dhaka bowling.

Batsmen as capable as Jos Buttler (5), Imrul Kayes (9) and Shoaib Malik (7) were dismissed cheaply. Hasan Ali and Mahedi Hasan’s valiant efforts came in too late to make a dent. It almost seemed like a completely different team had taken the field in the guise of Comilla Victorians as their stint bore no resemblance to the authoritarian performances they’d put up throughout the tournament.

Dhaka were able to put up a clinical performance in all three departments and clearly came out as the better team. Mosaddek Hossain and the skipper, himself picked up 2 wickets apiece while Afridi bagged 3, helping their team on the path of victory.

Sunil Narine was nothing short of exemplary as he achieved the rare feat of a wicket-maiden in a T20 game. As a result, it’s the Dhaka side that has ascended to the finals in panache, while Comilla will get a second chance to redeem themselves on Sunday.

Brief Scores:

Dhaka Dynamites: 191/7 in 20 overs (E Lewis 47, H Ali 3/16)

Comilla Victorians: 96/10 in 20 overs (T Iqbal 31; S Afridi 3/16)

Player of the Match: Shahid Afridi