Sports DesK

After a few high-scoring encounters on the opening day, the National Cricket League (NCL) T20 saw bowlers dominating on the second day. There were a few thrilling encounters with Khulna winning the match in the last ball and Dhaka Metro stealing a victory in the final over.

But there was one man who stole the spotlight, Tamim Iqbal. Much has been talked about the southpaw’s return to competitive cricket after a seven-month hiatus. He couldn’t live up to the expectations on the first day managing to score only 13 runs in the opening game.

But the left-handed batter returned to form with a blazing half-century against Sylhet in the second match as Chattogram clinched a 12-run victory after the game was reduced to 15 overs per side due to bad light, at the Sylhet Academy Ground on Thursday.

Batting first, Chattogram posted 145/9, with Tamim leading the charge. The experienced campaigner smashed 65 off just 33 balls, hitting 8 fours and 3 sixes which earned him the player of the match award.

He shared a crucial 80-run opening stand with Mahmudul Hasan Joy, who contributed 29 runs.

Despite a middle-order collapse, the strong foundation laid by Tamim and Joy helped Chattogram reach a competitive total.

Sylhet pacer Khaled Ahmed picked up four wickets for 19 runs.

In reply, Sylhet managed 133 all out in 14.2 overs. Opener Toufiq Khan Tushar fought valiantly, scoring a blistering 76 off 36 balls with 7 fours and 6 sixes.

Chattogram’s spin duo Nayeem Hasan and Hasan Murad picked up three wickets each.

“When you’ve been out of the game for a long time, you need to adjust to many things. The first match went okay, and the second match went well, Alhamdulillah. Whether I play two or three more matches, game time is extremely important for me, especially for the BPL,” Tamim said  after the game.

“I hope to perform well in the next two or three matches and then focus on the BPL,” he added.

Elsewhere on the day, three run outs in the final over thanks to skipper Nurul Hasan Sohan’s – who recently led Rangpur Riders to Global Super League (GSL) triumph – heroics helped Khulna beat Barishal by just one run in a nail-biting finish.

Khulna posted 130/9 after batting first while Barishal managed 129/9 in their 20 overs.

Nurul ran Barishal’s Tanvir Islam and Ruyel Miah out in the final two deliveries to seal the win for Khulna.

Barishal’s Kamrul Islam Rabbi picked up four Khulna wickets.

Meanwhile, Rajshahi’s Farhad Reza missed on the opportunity to become the day’s hero after failing to score 10 runs in the final over against Dhaka Metro. He did all the hard work to script an epic fightback only to suffer defeat in the end.

Batting first, Dhaka Metro posted 162 thanks to Naim Sheikh’s blistering 43. In reply, Rajshahi were reduced to 110/8 after 16 overs, needing 53 runs to win from the final four overs.

Farhad took things to his own hand and played shots all around the ground. He took the required runs to 10 in the final over but faltered in the end. He eventually bagged 60 but Rajshahi lost the match by 8 runs.

Dhaka Metro’s Shohidul Islam conceded only one run in the final over. He also picked up four wickets in the match.

In the day’s other match, Rizwan Chowdhury’s four-wicket haul helped Rangpur beat Dhaka by 21 runs in DLS method as the match had to be reduced to 17 overs per side due to bad light.