Sylhet Sixers desecrate Chittagong Vikings
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For the first half of the game, it felt as though curator,
Gamini De Silva, didn’t heed to the remarks of Mashrafe Mortaza and Tamim Iqbal
– the captains of Rangpur Riders and Comilla Victorians, respectively – after
they criticized the pitch at the Shere Bangla Stadium for being too erratic.
Yesterday’s game against the aforementioned two teams couldn’t
even muster a combined total of 200 runs in 30.3 overs of T20 cricket. As
Chittagong Vikings locked horns with Sylhet Sixers, the fans and players were
hoping that things wouldn’t turn out like yesterday.
However, their hopes were shattered as Luke Ronchi-led
Chittagong Vikings were absolutely dismantled for a mere 67 runs in 12 overs.
Nasir Hossain wreaked havoc for the Sixers as he picked up 5 wickets after 4
overs while giving away 31 runs.
Chittagong’s batting tale cut a sad and sorry figure as none
of the batsmen could score over 15 runs. After team icon, Soumya Sarkar, got
out for a golden duck, captain Luke Ronchi scored just 6 before perishing
to the pavilion.
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Meanwhile, Irfan Sukkur bagged 15 runs from 13 balls and
Luis Reece scored 12 from as many balls to take Chittagong’s total to 67.
At this point, the crowd were expecting a replication of
yesterday, with the Sylhet Sixers also struggling to reach the target. As the
trumpets were about to be blown and the fingers were already beginning to point
towards the curator, the Sixers came out and blazed their way to a 10-wicket
victory in 11.1 overs.
Mohammad Rizwan scored 36 not-out from 33 balls while he was
perfectly complemented by Andre Fletcher’s unbeaten innings of 32 from 34
balls, giving the Sixers a 10-wicket victory. None of the Chittagong bowlers
could do anything to stop them from coasting to the target as this win gives
the Sixers a faint hope of finishing top 4.
The match was a perfect depiction of Chittagong’s failing in
this year’s Bangladesh Premier League. After a terrible outing in the auction,
they played exactly the way expected from their squad. As the Vikings are
already out of the tournament, they can only look forward to next year’s
edition.
The fans will hope that the management will make better decisions
in next year’s auctions and sign some experienced stars to help their bid in
next year’s Bangladesh Premier League.
With this win, Sylhet are at number 5 on the points table and only 1 point behind the top 4 spot. They will be hoping that Rangpur lose their remaining matches as it is the only way they have a chance to proceed to the next round.
Picture Courtesy : Getty Images