Sports Desk: The Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) play-off round has gathered. The fight between four teams has come down to three teams. The Comilla Victorians beat Rangpur Riders to reach the finals, and the second qualifier is once again in the thick of it. Today, Rangpur and Fortune Barisal face each other in the fight to reach the final. Both teams have been showing their best so far. The question is: Rangpur or Barisal, who is ahead in strength? Let’s find the answer.
Rangpur Riders and Fortune Barisal will face off in the final at 6:30 PM at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Wednesday (February 28). Barisal got a chance to fight to reach the final after defeating the Chittagong Challengers in the eliminator. Rangpur got the match as a second chance to reach the final after losing to the Comilla Victorians in the first qualifier.
Rangpur reached the playoffs as the second-best team after winning consecutively since the beginning of this season. The biggest star of their team is Shakib Al-Hasan. Along with that, the team has gathered all the famous foreign stars. Nicholas Pooran, Jimmy Neesham, and Fazal Haque Farooqui came and balanced the team’s batting and bowling lines.
Shakib Al Hasan faded a lot due to eye problems at the beginning of the season, but he regained his form with time. The world’s best all-rounder has given his best with bat and ball since the middle period. So far, Shakib is the best of the tournament, with 254 runs at a strike rate of 161 and only 6.15 runs per over. You can still play a big role.
New Zealand’s star all-rounder, Jimmy Neesham, can also play a big role with bat and ball. The Kiwi all-rounder went on a rampage with the bat alone against Comilla in the first qualifier. Besides, Nicholas can throw up a storm at any time. The Caribbean Storm can show today that Puran could not shine with the bat against Comilla. Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s Fazal Haque Farooqui was successful in the first match with the ball.
Barisal has entered the field with a well-balanced team. They have formed a team to fight domestic and foreign. Their captain, Tamim Iqbal, is leading the batting from the front. The country’s best opener left the field undefeated after winning the team in the previous match. Tamim has scored 443 runs in 13 innings in the tournament so far, which is the second highest in the tournament so far. Soumya Sarkar is with him. Who can change the scenario of the match on his day?
Apart from Tamim, Caribbean star Kyle Myers is equally leading the batting-bowling department of the team. After bowling brilliantly with the ball in the fight to get to the qualifiers, he made himself known with a storming fifty. Also, the team’s biggest ad is David Miller of ‘Killer’ fame. There are two experienced batsmen, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah, who bat. Saifuddin is reinventing himself in the all-rounder category. Mehdi Hasan Miraj is creating a small storm in every match.
Barisal and Rangpur won one each in the first phase of the face-to-face match. Barisal started their journey by defeating Rangpur by five wickets on the second day of the tournament. Later in the return match, Rangpur equalized with a 1-wicket victory.
Meanwhile, Rangpur, who finished the league stage at the top, did not win again in the last two matches as a team. They lost both matches to Comilla. Barisal is in the opposite situation. Tamim’s team confirmed the play-off ticket by defeating Comilla. After defeating Chittagong, they got the second qualifier ticket.
In this match, Barisal coach Mizanur Rahman said, “We came in a good rhythm, in good condition. I am in a better position than I was in the beginning. Everyone is playing well. Whoever makes the team wants to win. We also want to win. It was definitely an important match. The two teams are of almost equal strength. As it is like a semi-final, whoever plays well tomorrow will win. There are no small or big groups.
And Rangpur coach Sohel Islam’s voice of confidence to turn around said, ‘There will be no pressure in the game of cricket; it cannot happen. In a tournament like the BPL, where the playoffs are underway, there will be pressure. And it must be played by winning. We want to turn around strongly. Now there is no other option.
BPL statistics show that Rangpur last played in the final in 2017. They also won the service title. Rangpur will get the ticket to the final after almost seven years if they can correct the mistake and beat Barisal one more time. Meanwhile, Barisal, who reached the final in 2022, wants to win the title by defeating Rangpur and facing Comilla.
