Rangpur Riders' struggles continued as they slumped to their third consecutive defeat in the Bangladesh Premier League, falling to Chittagong Kings by five wickets.
After an impressive eight-match winning streak that secured their playoff spot, Rangpur have lost momentum, suffering back-to-back defeats against Rajshahi before this latest setback at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Wednesday (January 29)
With Pakistan's Champions Trophy squad selection looming, Rangpur’s Khushdil Shah and Chittagong’s Usman Khan both returned home, missing this fixture.
Rangpur managed to post 144 for 5 in 20 overs, largely due to Iftikhar Ahmed’s unbeaten 65 off 47 balls. His innings, featuring three sixes and seven fours, was crucial in stabilising an otherwise shaky batting lineup.
Mahedi Hasan provided support with 22* off 20, putting together an unbroken 75-run stand for the sixth wicket.
Earlier, Soumya Sarkar contributed 23 off 17, but Rangpur’s batting lacked fluency overall.
Defending their total, Rangpur started well, restricting Chittagong to 63 for 3 after 10 overs.
However, Haider Ali turned the game on its head with a blistering 48* off just 18 balls, smashing four consecutive sixes off Akif Javed in the 18th over to seal the win with 14 balls to spare.
With this defeat, Rangpur are now in second place with 16 points from 11 matches but have lost their winning rhythm at a crucial stage of the tournament.
Bd-Pratidin English/ARK
