Warner vs Smith showdown in titanic BPL clash
Photo - BCB
|| CF Correspondent ||
A mouthwatering clash is on the cards as David Warner’s Sylhet Sixers will take on Steven Smith’s Comilla Victorians in the opening game of the second day in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Sunday.
The game is expected to be keenly viewed contest as the Australian duo, who has been on a 12-month ban due to their ball tampering incident in Newland, will make their maiden appearance in BPL.
Some of the leading cricketers of the world are expected to take part in the BPL while Smith and Warner are surely among the top in the bracket.
Smith, who arrived on Friday, spent a busy day at the BCB academy premises as he joined the training session with his Victorians team mates.
Despite having a batting session at the nets that lasted over 20 minutes he opted to have an individual throw down and that too after completing the fielding drill only suggested that he was keen to prove his worth.
While Smith was leaving the field a curious journalist asked him whether he enjoyed the session with his team mates in the opening day and he replied in a positive note.
‘’It was a fantastic day and I thoroughly enjoyed it,’’ Smith told in a smiling face.
‘’Naturally I want to win the tournament for Victorians,’’ he added.
Despite losing five top players to the Big Bash League, including Rashid Khan and Jos Buttler, Comilla Victorians still have a strong squad as they had roped in Evin Lewis and Shoaib Malik while they also have the luxury to choose from Imrul Kayes, Anamul Haque and Shamsur Rahman among the local batsmen.
Victorians have at least three frontline all-rounders - Shahid Afridi, Thisara Perera and Mohammad Saifuddin and to support them there is Liam Dawson, Mosharraf Hossain and Ziaur Rahman.
Pace bowler Abu Hider will dictate the proceedings in the bowling department while there is off-spinner Mahedi Hasan and Sanjit Saha with the potential to offer variety.
‘’ Steve Smith came yesterday. He behaved with us in such way that we had acquaintance with him so long. Hopefully there will be no problem with him. He is a professional player, I think, he could adjust with all. We all help him as much as possible for our team’s betterment,’’ said Imrul Kayes.
On the other hand Sixers will be largely dependent on the service of Warner but there are few who can change the course of the game on the back of their own skill with batsmen like Liton Das, Sabbir Rahman and Nasir Hossain under their possession. They also have options in Taskin Ahmed, Afif Hossain, Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali, Ebadat Hossain and Mehidy Hasan Rana.
Among the foreign players, Imran Tahir, Nicholas Pooran, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Irfan and Andre Fletcher add T20 experience to the mix, while BPL newcomers like Fabian Allen, Sandeep Lamichhane, Gulbadin Naib and Pat Brown bring their different skills to enhance Sixers' all-round game.
“I am extremely grateful to be leading the side. For me it is about making sure that we as a whole, including the support staff and management, can get the best out of the players. We have to establish our best XI when we get into the park and make sure we do the right things in training. I have to make sure I am doing my job right, which is scoring runs and leading the guys on the park,’’ said Warner during his introduction ceremony.
