Nafees leads Khulna to easy win

Khulna Royal Bengals 140 for 3 (Nafees 71, Mubarak 30*) beat Duronto Rajshahi 138 for 9 (Mukhtar 41*, Santokie 3-18) by seven wickets
Scorecard

Khulna Royal Bengals claimed their first victory in five games, beating Duronto Rajshahi by eight wickets. Chasing 139 to win, the Royal Bengals, led by Shahriah Nafees' 71, sauntered to victory in 19.2 overs.

Nafees, like in the previous two wins by his team, was the key contributor in the victory. He struck eleven boundaries in his 52-ball knock, finishing the match with a six off Ben Edmondson with five runs required for victory. He guided the chase with two partnerships; he added 63 for the second wicket with Travis Birt, who made 23 off 26 balls with two fours and a six, and followed this up with a 54-run stand in 6.4 overs with Jehan Mubarak, who remained unbeaten till the end for a 27-ball 30.

Earlier, Rajshahi had recovered to post a fighting total after they had slipped to 64 for 6 in the 11th over. Mukhtar Ali and Sean Ervine added 42 for the seventh wicket, and Mukhtar remained unbeaten on 41 to lead them to 138. Mukhtar hammered four boundaries and two sixes during his 30-ball innings.

For the Royal Bengals, Krishmar Santokie took three wickets while left-arm spinner Sanjamul Islam and legspinner Noor Hossain picked up two each.

Both teams played with different captains today; Lou Vincent led the Royal Bengals despite Nafees being in the playing eleven, and Tamim captained Rajshahi in place of Chamara Kapugedera.