Dhaka-Rangpur clash in BPL final today

Sports Desk: Dhaka Dynamites and Rangpur Riders are all set to face in the final clash of Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) today (Tuesday).

The match is scheduled to be held at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium (SBNCS) at 6:00pm.

The chances of the BPL final being a one-sided affair are fairly high. If even one of Dhaka Dynamites’ departments – either the top-order batsmen or the spin bowlers – fire full throttle, then Rangpur Riders will struggle in the finale.

At the same time, if Chris Gayle, Brendon McCullum or Johnson Charles repeat what they did earlier in the playoffs, Dhaka could very well be out of the contest quite early.

Evin Lewis, Joe Denly, Shahid Afridi and Sunil Narine have struck 56 sixes among them, and have batted at a strike-rate of 144.61. Every time they have fired with the bat, Dhaka have cruised to victory.

Afridi and Narine also form part of Dhaka’s three-man spin attack including the captain Shakib Al Hasan, and the trio has been relentless through the season. Shakib is the tournament’s leading wicket-taker while Afridi already has two four-wicket hauls.

Narine, meanwhile, has been the tournament’s most frugal bowler after Rashid Khan, conceding at five per over in 11 matches.

Gayle, Charles and McCullum have come late to the party, but they have peaked at the right time for Rangpur. Gayle and Charles have both scored hundreds in the qualifiers while McCullum hammered nine sixes in his whirlwind 78 in the second of those matches. Gayle has a bit of an ankle injury concern but according to Mashrafe Mortaza, it is nothing he can’t shake off.

All in all, it promises to be an intriguing battle between the two teams’ spin bowlers and their top orders. Dhaka are the clear favourites, but momentum can act in funny ways.

Abu Hider, the left-arm pace bowler, has won Shakib’s praise for doing a good job in their spin-heavy attack. Hider has taken 15 wickets at an average of 18.20.

Nazmul Islam is an uncapped left-arm spinner who has a unique celebration style, but apart from that, he has been Rangpur’s most effective bowler in the middle overs. He may play a crucial role when Dhaka bat.

risingbd/Dhaka/December 12, 2017/A K Azad