Malik, Shamim heroics guide Rangpur to victory

|| CF DESK ||

Rangpur Riders won by four wickets against Khulna Tigers in the ongoing Bangladesh. Premier League (BPL) at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, on Friday.

Chasing a below-par target of 131, Rangpur had to fight a tough contest to secure the last-over thriller against Khulna.

Rangpur were slumped to 31-3 during the first powerplay, then Shoaib Malik came to crease to join opener Mohammad Naim. The duo helped the side to cross the 50-run mark as Malik took the charge of the game. 

Nasum sent off Naim on 21 runs caught by Wahab Riaz, then Malik single-handedly took the game near to victory, he scored the crucial 44 runs off 36 balls aided by three boundaries and a couple of sixes.

Azmatullah Omarzai (8) and Shamim Hossain (16) completed the run chase in the last over.

Batting first, Khulna Tigers managed to put 130 being all out in 20 overs. Azam Khan top-scored 34 for Khulna while Yasir Ali and Mohammad Saifuddin played brief knocks of 25 and 22 runs respectively.

Robiul Hoque scalped four wickets while Omarzai, Hasan Mahmud and Rakibul Hasan took two wickets each for Rangpur.