Shakib, Shahriar, Bravo lead Barishal to victory

Fortune Barishal ended Sylhet Sunrisers' hopes of a place in the BPL playoffs, beating them by 12 runs. After putting together a formidable 199 for 4 batting first, Barishal waited out Colin Ingram's 49-ball 90 before closing out the game with tight overs in the second half of the chase.

Shakib Al Hasan once again turned in an all-round performance, but this time it was his 2 for 23 from four overs that made more of a difference. His fourth over going for three runs helped Barishal turn the corner, before part-timer Najmul Hossain Shanto removed the well-set Ingram and Mizanur Rahman off consecutive balls to put the pressure back on Sylhet.

The win solidified Barishal's position on top of the table with 13 points from nine games. Sylhet remain rooted at the bottom after their sixth defeat in eight outings.

Barishal's batters combined to hit 14 sixes, the most in an innings in this season's BPL. Munim Shahriar started the big-hitting by taking 17 runs off Sohag Gazi in the first over. He struck three sixes and six fours, reaching his maiden BPL fifty off just 26 balls.

Shakib continued the run-spree with his 19-ball 38, hitting four sixes over midwicket, backward square leg and wide long-off. All this time, Gayle bided his time at the other end, playing a supporting role. He struck his first six in the 16th over, and although he went on to score a fifty, it was Dwayne Bravo towards the end who did actual damage. Bravo struck four sixes, one sliced off Shiraz Ahmed, and the others conventional over long-off and wide long-on.

The left-handed Ingram gave Sylhet a brilliant start by hitting ten fours in the powerplay overs, the most by any batter this season. Six of those fours were off the usually economical Mujeeb Ur Rahman.

Ingram reached his second BPL fifty in no time, as he crashed Mehedi Hasan Rana for 21 runs in the 10th over. He struck four boundaries, all along the carpet on the offside, bringing down the required run-rate below ten for the first and only time, in the chase.

But a combination of Shakib, Bravo, Ziaur Rahman and Shanto made all the difference for Barishal.

Sylhet leaked a lot of runs, mainly due to left-arm quick Shiraz who had an outing to forget. He conceded 56 runs in four wicketless overs. The Barishal batters took a liking to his pace, it seemed, hitting him for five sixes and three fours. It is the worst bowling figures in the BPL this season, beating Taskin Ahmed's 1 for 53 from four overs. In his second game for Sylhet, Shiraz remains without a wicket in the tournament.

Mujeeb also had an off-day, giving away 40 runs in four wicketless overs. It was rare to see the mystery bowler go for so many, with Ingram hitting him for six fours in the powerplay. Some of the fours were streaky, but Mujeeb was certainly knocked off his length by the left-hander.