Saif Hassan and Mohammad Naim formed a strong partnership of 164 runs for the second wicket, leading Central Zone to a convincing five-wicket victory over North Zone in the Bangladesh Cricket League final held at Mirpur’s Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium today. Central Zone, having already triumphed over North Zone in a previous league match, showcased dominance both with the bat and the ball to secure their second BCL one-day trophy.
After restricting North Zone to 238 all out in 49.3 overs, Central Zone faced an early setback when opener Jishan Alam fell for 14 off 17 deliveries to Nahid Rana. However, Naim and Saif stood firm against the bowling attack of Rana and Shoriful Islam, taking control of the match. Both batsmen capitalized on loose deliveries, with Saif reaching his fifty off 49 balls and Naim reaching his half-century off 63 balls.
As the duo seemed to be heading towards centuries, North Zone fought back with Rishad Hossain dismissing Naim for a well-made 78 off 87 balls, including five fours and three sixes. Shortly after, Saif was caught high on the bat off a Shoriful delivery, departing for a crucial 87 off 78 deliveries, featuring seven fours and three sixes.
Despite a slow finish, Central Zone managed to chase down the target with 12 overs to spare, losing two more wickets in the process. In the earlier stages of the match, North Zone struggled as Taskin Ahmed and Ripon Mondol took early wickets. While opener Habibur Rahman fell for five off 17 balls, Tanzid Tamim departed after scoring 23 off 22 deliveries.
In the absence of Litton Das, Nazmul Hossain Shanto and Tawhid Hridoy stitched a 52-run partnership for the third wicket. However, Saif dismissed Shanto for 35 off 51 balls, and Rakibul Hasan’s double strike further dented North Zone’s progress, reducing them to 123 for five.
Hridoy, who reached his half-century off 69 balls, looked poised for a century but was dismissed for 96 off 98 deliveries as North Zone failed to surpass the 250-run mark. Ripon emerged as the standout bowler for Central Zone, claiming four wickets for 41 runs in 9.3 overs, while Taskin secured two wickets for 56 runs in his quota of 10 overs.