Dhaka Dynamites have won the 2016 edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) after they defeated the Rajshahi Kings by 56 runs in the final at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur on Friday.
Kings’ captain Darren Sammy had won the toss and elected to bowl first which proved to be a costly decision as his team simply couldn’t keep up with the pressure that comes with chasing down a total in a final.
The Dynamites managed to score 159/9 in their 20 overs, with healthy contributions from West Indies’ Evin Lewis and Sri Lankan great Kumar Sangakkara. Lewis top scored with a 31-ball 45 while Sangakkara contributed 36 to the Dhaka-based team’s total.
Fast bowler Farhad Reza was the pick of the Rajshahi bowlers, with figures of 3/28 in his four overs.
The match seemed to be in the balance with the Kings’ score reading 59/1 at the end of the ninth over during the chase. But the run-out of Sabbir Rahman in the following over started a collapse that the Sammy-led team never recovered from.
The Kings would go on to lose eight wickets for 41 runs, getting bowled out for 103 in 17.4 overs. West Indian player Kesrick Williams had to leave the field retired hurt after he was accidentally hit on his elbow by a throw from international team-mate Dwayne Bravo.
Captain Shakib al Hasan, Abu Jayed, and Sunzamul Islam all picked up two wickets a piece for the champions.
This is the first time that the Dhaka Dynamites have won the tournament after they were rebranded in 2015. They had won the first two editions of the BPL, playing as the Dhaka Gladiators.
Mahmudullah of the Khulna Titans was named the Player of the Tournament as he ended the event with 396 runs and 10 wickets in 14 matches.
BRIEF SCORES
Dhaka Dynamites 159/9 [Lewis 45, Sangakkara 36, Reza 3/28] beat Rajshahi Kings 103 all out [Mominul Haque 27, Sabbir Rahman 26, Jayed 2/12, Islam 2/17, Shakib 2/30] by 56 runs.
Man of the Match – Kumar Sangakkara
