Nayeem Ahmed struck an unbeaten 176 to put Rajshahi in a commanding position against Barishal on the second day of their third-round match in the 28th National Cricket League at Rajshahi on Monday.
Rajshahi reached 424/5 in reply to Barishal’s 229, building a 195-run lead before bad light brought an early end to the day’s play.
Batting at number four, Nayeem faced 233 deliveries and struck 25 boundaries. He shared a 152-run stand for the fourth wicket with Sabbir Rahman, who contributed 86 off 118 balls. S M Meherob Hasan then joined Nayeem to put on an unbeaten 104-run partnership, with Meherob making 57.
At the Bir Shrestha Shaheed Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman Cricket Stadium in Chattogram, Sylhet moved seven runs ahead of Rangpur after the latter were dismissed for 206 in their first innings.
Having been bowled out for 179, Sylhet reached 34 without loss in their second innings. Rangpur had earlier relied on captain Akbar Ali’s 74 and Mim Mosaddek’s 59 to establish a 27-run first-innings lead. Nayeem Ahmed claimed four wickets for Sylhet, while Nasum Ahmed took three. Shykat Ali and Zakir Hasan were unbeaten on 16 and 17 respectively at stumps.
In Cox’s Bazar, Mymensingh posted 387 in their first innings, with Mahfijul Islam scoring a century and Shuvagata Hom making 71, while captain Rakibul Hasan added 61. Hom also became the first Bangladeshi cricketer to score 7,000 runs and take 300 wickets in first-class cricket.
Aminul Islam Biplob claimed four wickets for Dhaka, while Sumon Khan took three. In reply, Dhaka reached 120/3 by stumps, with captain Mohammad Naim unbeaten on 64 and Mahfuzur Rabby on nine.
Chattogram held a 49-run first-innings advantage over Khulna in Sylhet and reduced their opponents to 161/6 by stumps.
Chattogram had earlier been dismissed for 250 after fifties from Shahadat Hossain, captain Irfan Shukkur and Shamim Hossain. Shahadat made 50, Irfan scored 59 and Shamim added 51.
Khulna’s chase was kept alive by Anamul Haque’s 53 and Afif Hossain’s unbeaten 58, but they remained 112 runs ahead with only four wickets standing. Afif was joined by Azizul Hakim Tamim, who was unbeaten on 12 after retiring hurt earlier. Hasan Murad and Mahmudul Hasan Joy took two wickets apiece for Chattogram.
