In the final over, Khulna Tigers needed 26 runs for victory. Naim Sheikh brought the game to life with back-to-back sixes off Fortune Barishal’s Ripon Mondol. On the third delivery, Naim attempted a slog, but the ball edged off his bat and flew towards short third man, where Dawid Malan dived to his right to take a stunning catch, dismissing Naim.
The match, which had swung back and forth during the last four overs, tilted decisively in Barishal’s favor.
After the final delivery, Khulna fell 7 runs short, managing 160 for 6 in reply to Barishal’s target of 168.
Despite a deep batting lineup and power-hitters like Mahidul Islam Ankon in the lower order, Khulna couldn’t chase the target, undone by the brilliant bowling of Barishal’s overseas trio—Mohammad Nabi, Faheem Ashraf, and Jahandad Khan.
Khulna suffered an early blow when Imrul Kayes departed in the second over. Although Naim and Mehidy Hasan stitched a 51-run partnership for the second wicket, they consumed 59 balls between them—an approach ill-suited for a T20 chase, as the outcome demonstrated. However, after Mehidy's departure, Afif Hossain Dhrubo injected momentum into the innings.
Together with Naim, Afif added 60 runs off just 28 balls, contributing 33 runs off 17 deliveries himself.
Barishal’s Jahandad Khan proved to be the game-changer, dismissing Afif when he looked set for a big innings. The left-arm pacer also provided the crucial breakthrough early on by removing Kayes. His impactful spell made all the difference for Barishal in a tightly contested match.
Earlier, Barishal made 167/9 thanks to Mahmudullah's 50 and Rishad Hossain's quickfire 39.
Bd-Pratidin English/ARK
