Although they were 13 points adrift before the final round, Prime Bank South Zone smartly clinched the title of the country’s first class cricket tournament, Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL), for a record third time crushing holders BCB North Zone by innings and 63 runs in the final round match on the 3rd day at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna on Thursday.
With the 3rd league crown, Prime Bank South Zone leapfrogged Central Zone, who have won the BCL title twice and the rest one crown went to North Zone.
BCB North Zone started their 6th and last round of the four-day match as favourite with 60 points from five matches against their rivals Prime Bank South Zone, who bagged only 47 points, but South Zone’s veteran national spinner Abdur Razzak made the difficult task easy grabbing 11 wickets in two innings.
After the match, South Zone clinched the league crown securing 65 points while BCB North Zone finished runners-up collecting 63 points.
Abdur Razzak grabbed six wickets for 48 runs in the second innings to dismiss the defending champions Zone cheaply again for just 115 runs on the third day morning.
He also claimed five wickets for 53 in the first innings to bundle out North Zone for 187 on the first day.
With the 9th 10-wicket haul, the lone highest wicket-taker of the country in the first class cricket, Abdur Razzak, was adjudged the man of the match.
Replying to Prime Bank South Zone’s first innings total of 365 for 8, BCB North Zone, having 187 runs in the first innings, resumed the 2nd innings on Thursday morning with 32 for no loss in eight overs and were bowled out cheaply for just 115 runs in 43.2 overs to suffer humiliating defeat as well as to get deprived of the title from a handshake distance.
South Zone built the good foundation of their lone innings featuring national top order batsman Imrul Kayes 107 runs off 165 balls with 13 fours and two sixes, opener Anamul Haque and number four Tushar Imran’s 89 and 65 runs respectively.
For the North Zone, lower order Suhrawardy Shuvo scored team highest 41 runs off 60 balls featuring six four and a six, opener Mizanur Rahman scored 28-ball 20 runs including three fours while another opener Junaid Sidiqque made a patient 48-ball 10 with a boundary.
Apart from Abdur Razzak’s six wickets for 48 runs, another spinner Saqlain Sajib grabbed three wickets for 34 runs.
