Gemcon Khulna lifted the title of Bangabandhu T20 Cup on Friday, beating Gazi Group Chattogram by 5 runs in the final at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. Khula batted first after losing the toss and posted 155 runs with Mahmudullah Riyad’s unbeaten 70. In reply, Chattogram made a cautious start. However, they lost two wickets – Soumya Sarkar (12), and Mohammad Mithun (7) – during the powerplay. Shuvagata Hom removed Soumya while Al Amin sent off Mithun. Khulna took control of the game in the first 10 overs, conceding only 63 runs and taking three wickets. Liton Das, the highest run-scorer for Chattogram, was caught short of the crease for 23 off 23 deliveries. Chattogram needed 94 runs in the last 10 overs. Riding on the 41-ball fifty of Shykat Ali, they inched towards victory but fell short of six runs in the last over bowled by Shahidul Islam. In the last 10 overs, Chattogram scored 87 runs. They needed 16 off the last six balls, but Shahidul conceded 10 only along with scalping the wickets of Shykat and Mosaddek Hossain in two successive deliveries. And Chattogram finished on 150 for six in 20 overs. Shahidul bagged two wickets while Al Amin, Shuvagata Hom and Hasan Mahmud took one wicket each for Khulna. Earlier, Khulna were sent to bat first after losing the toss. It made the match tough for them right away as Nahidul Islam removed Jahurul Islam off the first ball. They also lost Imrul Kayes for eight adding only 42 runs in six overs in the powerplay. Nahidul bagged two wickets conceding 19 runs in three overs. Next Chattogram captain Mohammad Mithun gave the ball to Mosaddek Hossain who removed Zakir Hasan for 25 off 20 balls. At the end of 10th over, Khulna were stuttering at 63 for three wickets. In the fourth wicket stand, Ariful Haque and Mahmudullah Riyad added 40 runs. Ariful, who was promoted up the batting order, managed 21 off 23 balls. Right after Ariful’s dismissal, Shuvagata Hom came in and posted 15 off 12 balls. He accompanied Mahmudullah in a 34-run stand in the fifth wicket partnership. They eventually posted a challenging total of 155 for seven in 20 overs. Mahmudullah Riyad hit an unbeaten 70 off 48 balls with eight fours and two sixes. For Chattogram, Nahidul and Shoriful bagged two wickets each while Mosaddek and Mustafizur took one wicket each. Source: UNB AH

Gemcon Khulna and Gazi Group Chattogram are all set to lock horns in the final of the Bangabandhu T20 Cup which will take place on Friday at 4:30pm at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.  These two teams ended the league-phase of the event with the highest points and run-rate. While Chattogram achieved 14 points from seven wins in eight games, Khulna gained eight points from four wins.  Chattogram lost Qualifier 1 against Khulna, but they made it to the final beating Beximco Dhaka in Qualifier 2.  Before taking the field in the final, both teams have revealed their desire to lift the trophy. Chattogram coach Mohammad Salahuddin said Khulna have some experienced players which will be a big advantage for them but he said he believes youngsters in his team have the ability to turn the tables. “We’ve a talented bunch of young players with some experienced guys. I believed they have the ability to deliver something expected in the final. Most of the players in our team didn’t play many finals in their lives. And at the same time, there will be no spectators in the gallery which is a relief for them because they are not used to much pressure,” he told the media Thursday during a practice session at Mirpur.  “It’s not important to think about what you’ve done in the last 10 games. It’ll not help us in the final. It (success in the final) depends on the performance we would show in the final and decisions we would take,” he added.  Chattogram was heavily reliant on Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Mustafizur Rahman and Shoriful Islam. Liton led them with the bat scoring 370 runs in nine games. He is also the highest runs getter in the event so far. Soumya also did well, scoring 280 runs in 10 games with an average of 31.11.  Left-arm pacer Mustafizur bagged 21 wickets in nine games for them while Shoriful scalped 14.  Khulna banks on new blood Khulna captain Mahmudullah Riyad also expressed his ambition to win the title with the squad that has a good mixture of young and experienced players. “We’ve a good tournament so far. We played a good brand of cricket, especially, I'm fascinated with the performance of players who were members of the World Cup-winning Bangladesh team,” Mahmudullah told the media on Thursday.  Mahmudullah said the inclusion of Mashrafe Bin Mortaza has increased experience in their team.  “He played many finals and won four titles of Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). So, it’s great to have him in the squad. I always talk to Mashrafe so that I can get ideas from him to do well in the field. We’re lucky that he’ll feature for us in the final,” he added.  Khulna, however, will miss the service of Shakib Al Hasan. The veteran allrounder left the team due to a family emergency.  “Shakib could play a vital role in the final. We all know what he can do in the field. Since he’s not available in the final, we should take the responsibilities to do well,” Khulna captain told the media.  Each member of the champion team will receive Tk 150,000 while each member of the runners-up team will get Tk 75,000. The best batsman and the best bowler of the event will receive Tk 200,000 each while the player of the tournament and man of the final will get Tk 300,000 and 100,000 respectively, and there will be special performance award for four players who each will receive Tk 100,000.  Source: UNB AH

Bangladesh’s former captain and the right-arm pacer Mashrafe Bin Mortaza scalped five wickets conceding 35 runs, his best in the format, and guided his team Gemcon Khulna to a 47-run win over Gazi Group Chattogram on Monday at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. With this win, Khulna marched to the final of the Bangabandhu T20 Cup 2020. While Khulna booked a place in the final, Chattogram will have to face Beximco Dhaka in the Qualifier 2 for another chance. Khulna batted first in this game losing the toss and posted 210 runs riding on 80 by Jahurul Islam. In reply, Chattogram lost Soumya Sarkar early which was a big blow for them. In the last ball of the over, Soumya tried to clear Masrhafe through the deep-midwicket area, but Shamim Hossain took an easy catch to dismiss the southpaw. Mashrafe hit again when he removed Liton Das during his second over. Liton tried to slog and chopped it onto the stumps. In the third wicket stand, Mohammad Mithun and Mahmudul Hasan added 73 runs, which has created a chance for Chattogram to make a comeback to the race to win the game. But going to 138 from 100, Khulna lost both of Mithun and Mahmudul, and they couldn’t recover from this damage anymore. While Mahmudul posted 31 off 27, Mithun scored 53 off 35 balls with three fours and as many as sixes. Mosaddek Hossain (17) and Shamsur Rahman (18) showed some resistance, but that wasn’t enough for Chattogram to seal this game. They eventually tumbled for 163 for all wicket in 20 overs and lost the game by 47 runs. For Khulna, Mashrafe bagged five wickets conceding 35 runs while Hasan Mahmud and Ariful Haque took two wickets each conceding 35 and 26 runs respectively. Earlier, Khulna posted a challenging total of 210 runs for seven in 20 overs. Jahurul led the charge posting 80 off 51 balls with five fours and four sixes. His opening partner Zakir Hasan, however, failed to do well this time, adding only 16 off 22 balls. Zakir was trapped run-out during the 10th over of the innings. Imrul Kayes came at number three and posted 25 off 12 balls with three fours and one six. Despite a good start, he failed to continue, the same was for Shakib Al Hasan, who posted 28 off 15 balls with two fours and as many as sixes. In his short stay in the middle, Mahmudullah Riyad posted 30 off only nine balls with two fours and three sixes. Mahmudullah was removed by the leg-spinner Sanjit Saha. For Chattogram, Mustafizur Rahman bagged two wickets conceding 31 runs while Sanjit Saha and Mosaddek Hossain took one wicket each. Chattogram will now face Beximco Dhaka in the second Qualifier of the event on December 15 at 4:30pm. Dhaka beat Fortune Barishal in the Eliminator to advance to the second Qualifier. Source: UNB AH

Football legend Diego Maradona, one of the greatest players of all time, has died at the age of 60. The former Argentina attacking midfielder and manager suffered a heart attack at his Buenos Aires home. He had successful surgery on a brain blood clot earlier in November and was to be treated for alcohol dependency. Maradona was captain when Argentina won the 1986 World Cup, scoring the famous 'Hand of God' goal against England in the quarter-finals. In a statement on social media, the Argentine Football Association expressed "its deepest sorrow for the death of our legend", adding: "You will always be in our hearts." Maradona played for Barcelona and Napoli during his club career, winning two Serie A titles with the Italian side. He scored 34 goals in 91 appearances for Argentina, representing them in four World Cups. Maradona led his country to the 1990 final in Italy, where they were beaten by West Germany, before captaining them again in the United States in 1994, but was sent home after failing a drugs test for ephedrine. During the second half of his career, Maradona struggled with cocaine addiction and was banned for 15 months after testing positive for the drug in 1991. He retired from professional football in 1997, on his 37th birthday, during his second stint at Argentine giants Boca Juniors. Having briefly managed two sides in Argentina during his playing career, Maradona was appointed head coach of the national team in 2008 and left after the 2010 World Cup, where his side were beaten by Germany in the quarter-finals. He subsequently managed teams in the United Arab Emirates and Mexico and was in charge of Gimnasia y Esgrima in Argentina's top flight at the time of his death. Source: BBC AH

Bangladesh’s ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan returned to the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Monday after more than a year. He visited the ‘Home of Cricket’ in the morning for a fitness test ahead of a five-team T20 league starting later this month. Shakib’s one-year ban for failing to report corrupt approaches ended recently. He returned home last Thursday and sparked controversy by violating quarantine rules. The all-rounder said he was eager to get back to competitive cricket. He played his last recognised cricket back in October 2019 in the Caribbean Premier League. Shakib might get a chance to make his comeback to international cricket early next year when the West Indies will visit Bangladesh for a full series. Source: UNB AH