Shanto's power Sylhet to 175-7 against Comilla in BPL 2023 Final

Najmul Hossain Shanto helped Sylhet Strikers post 175-7 in 20 overs against Comilla Victorians in the final of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) 2023 at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium Thursday.

Comilla's fielders were surprisingly sloppy, conceding at least 25-30 runs due to misfielding and dropped catches.

Towhid Hridoy, who hit five fifties in this BPL, made a duck. Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, captain of Sylhet, came to bat at number three, as he did in the second qualifier. But this time the plan did not work for him.

So, the onus was on Shanto and Mushfiqur to rescue their team. And the duo added 79 runs off 56 balls in the third wicket stand.

Shanto hit nine fours and a six in his 45-ball 64. He was dismissed by Moeen Ali in the 13th over, leaving Sylhet at 105-3.

Mushfiqur continued to anchor the innings. He remained unbeaten on 74 off 48 balls, with five fours and three sixes. He added 29 runs with Ryan Burl (13), who was caught by Mosaddek Hossain off Mustafizur Rahman in the 16th over.

George Linde (9) hit a four before being caught by Litton Das off Mustafizur in the 18th over. Zakir Hasan (1) was run out by Moeen Ali in the penultimate over.

Tanzim Hasan Sakib joined Mushfiqur for the last four balls and remained not out for zero.

For Comilla, Mustafizur was the most successful bowler, grabbing two wickets for 31 runs in four overs. Moeen Ali, Tanvir Islam, Sunil Narine, and Andre Russell took one wicket each.

Sylhet Strikers are playing their first BPL final after topping the points table. Comilla Victorians are defending champions who beat Rangpur Riders by seven wickets in last year's final.