BPL 4, Match 14, Review: Dhaka Dynamites beat Chittagong Vikings by 19 runs

After a good two day break, the action resumed in the BPL 4. Table toppers Dhaka Dynamites took on Chittagong Vikings, who were among the bottom two in the table. The Dynamites under Shakib Al Hasan looked to consolidate their good run. The Vikings, on the other hand, were a worried unit coming into the match. They had lost their last 3 matches after having won the tournament opener.

Coming into the game, the Vikings won the toss and opted to bowl first. Skipper Tamim Iqbal looked relaxed at the toss. Dwayne Smith was left out of the team and pacer Tymal Mills made a comeback. Imran Khan Jr retained his place in the team after a decent outing in the last match. Mohammad Nabi and Grant Elliott were the other two overseas players for Chittagong Vikings in the match.

Dhaka Dynamites went in the overseas combination of Kumar Sangakkara, Dwayne Bravo, Seekkuge Prasanna and Matt Coles. Coles, the batting all-rounder from England, played his first match of the season. In walked Mehedi Maruf and Kumar Sangakkara to open the innings as Tymal Mills took the new ball with Subhasis Roy.

Maruf looked in sublime touch and took a special liking to Roy in the powerplay. Sangakkara could not find the middle of the blade, tough. Mohammad Nabi, who has been the star performer for Vikings this season, was at his best again. He dismissed a dangerous looking Maruf on 33 in the 5th over. Maruf’s knock came off 20 balls with 6 fours and a six. Nasir Hossain was the new man in. He did not let the tempo go down either as Dynamites posted 58 in the powerplay.

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Tymal Mills was brought back in to the attack. The pacer dismissed both Hossain (20 off 14 balls) and Sangakkara (17 off 22 balls) in space of 4 balls in the 10th over. Dhaka Dynamites were placed at 73/3 at the half way stage. Two new batsmen, Mosaddek Hossain Saikat and Shakib Al Hasan, were at the crease. Shakib’s brief stay of 7 balls saw him score 13 with 2 fours before Nabi accounted for his dismissal.

A lower order collapse was on the cards for Dynamites after that. None among the last 5 batsmen could get in to double digits. Saikat fought hard from the other end. His 26-ball 35 with 2 fours and 2 six saw Dhaka Dynamites post 148/9 in their 20 overs. Mills and Nabi bagged 3 wickets each to put Chittagong Vikings back in the game.

Chittagong Vikings lost Jahurul Islam early on in their run chase as Dwayne Brav got rid of him on 6 in the third over. Skipper Tamim Iqbal was joined by Anamul Haque at the crease. The duo moved cautiously to 32 in the powerplay but Haque was dismissed soon after. Hossain dismissed him on 17 in the 7th over to bring Mahmudul Hasan to the crease.

The Chittagon Vikings struggled in the middle overs. This was evident from the fact that even Tamim Iqbal found it tough batting in the middle. Tamim’s dismissal on 26 off 35 balls came in the 13th over Bravo had him caught by Mosaddke Saikat. The Vikings stuttered at 66/3 in 12.1 overs. Mahmudul departed soon after for 22-ball 20 as Matt Coles got through his defenses.

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Mohammad Nabi looked promising as he hit 2 fours first up. But he perished after scoring 15 off 10 balls in the 16th over. Grant Elliott and Nazmul Hossain Milon had an uphill task ahead of them needing 59 off 29 balls. Sadly for the Vikings, they both were dismissed in quick succession on 8 and 13 respectively.

The match never looked in control for the Vikings. They ended up losing by a narrow margin though. All they could manage in their 20 overs was 129/8.

Dhaka Dynamites won comfortably in the end by 19 runs and consolidated their position at the top of the points table. The Vikings have now lost 4 matches in a row.

Brief Scores:

Dhaka Dynamites: 148/9 in 20 overs (Saikat 35, Maruf 33, Nabi 3/18, Mills 3/25)

Chittagong Vikings: 129/8 in 20 overs (Iqbal 26, Mahmudul 20, Shahid 3/23, Coles 1/23)