Lewis, Delport fifties set up crushing win

Cameron Delport and Evin Lewis scorched away to half-centuries as Dhaka Dynamites resurrected their Bangladesh Premier League title defense with a crushing 65-run win over Khulna Titans in Sylhet. Lewis and Delport went on a six-hitting spree in a period of batting mayhem that lasted nine overs. The two added 116 for the second wicket that hauled Dhaka to 202 for 7 - the first 200-plus total in the tournament since the 2013 edition.

No team had ever successfully chased down a 200-plus total in the BPL, and that stayed on Sunday as Khulna managed a measly 137 in their reply, getting bowled out in 18.1 overs, with Jofra Archer having top-scored with 36.

Between them, Lewis and Delport smashed eight sixes. While all of Lewis' three sixes were over midwicket, Delport favoured the long-on region, where he collected four of his five sixes. Carlos Brathwaite, Abu Jayed and Shafiul Islam bore the brunt of Delport's destructive form. In the 12th over, Delport shellacked Mosharraf Hossain for 18 runs off five balls, first depositing him over long-on and deep midwicket for successive sixes before reverse-sweeping him for four. Delport complemented his big hits with four fours and finished with 64 off 31 balls, leaving Khulna wondering what could have been avoided had Nazmul Hossain Shanto taken Delport's catch at long-on when the batsman was on 10.

Lewis deposited Shafiul Islam over cow corner before shoveling a four through the same region. But the bowler hit back three deliveries later when Lewis offered a simple catch to cover after failing to get on top of the bounce of a short ball, ending what had been an entertaining stand.

The rest of Dhaka's order couldn't quite live up to the high bar set by Lewis and Delport. In fact, they could barely gather any steam. As a result, Dhaka slipped from 154 for 1 in the 13th over to finish on 202 for 7 in 20 overs, collecting just 48 runs in the last seven overs, for the loss of six wickets.

Jayed was Khulna's best bowler, taking 2 for 29 in four overs that included the scalp of Delport. Shafiul ended with two wickets too, but at the cost of 41 runs in three overs. Archer and Brathwaite took one wicket apiece, but it was a day to forget for Mosharraf, who gave away 21 runs in his only over.

Khulna's early run rate in pursuit of 203 was quite good. What didn't help, though, was losing six wickets inside nine overs. The slide began with Abu Hider getting rid of Shanto in his first over, before Brathwaite fell lbw to Shakib Al Hasan two balls later. Walton and Rilee Rossouw then combined briefly for a third-wicket stand of 35 that ended when Walton slashed Shakib to Kumar Sangakkara behind the stumps. Hider's one-handed stunner off his own bowling sent back Mahmudullah in the seventh over. A recovery thereafter never materialised.

"We just complemented each other and rotated strike well. We both are good strikers of the ball. We both went for it and it paid off tonight."
Cameron Delport on his 116-run stand with Evin Lewis