Sylhet Titans coach Sohel Islam said his team lost the match at key moments in the chase. He felt the target was within reach, but crucial wickets changed the game in Rajshahi Warriors’ favour.
“Of course it was a chaseable total. I think today’s wicket was good for batting compared to the other matches we have played. So it was a score that could be chased,” Sohel said after the BPL second qualifier on Wednesday.
Sylhet started the chase with an early blow as Zakir Hasan got out quickly. The pressure rose, but Parvez Hossain Emon responded with attacking shots and kept the run chase alive. He also built a useful stand with Sam Billings.
But Sylhet suffered a big setback when Parvez was run out for 48. Sohel called it the main turning point of the match.
“When you lose an early wicket, it puts pressure on the team. We overcame that. Emon was batting very well and he built a good partnership with Sam Billings. So you could call his run out the turning point,” he said.
Sylhet then lost more ground when they gave away two wickets close together. Moeen Ali and Billings both departed, and Sohel felt the chase slipped away from that point.
“Those two wickets set us back a long way,” he added.
Sylhet still had hope late in the innings. But the pressure grew again when Khaled Ahmed was caught near the boundary by Sahibzada Farhan. Sohel said the match could have changed if the shot had cleared the rope.
“Of course it was a turning point. We were trying right to the end. You know Khaled is a big hitter. If just two of those hits were sixes, the game could have looked very different. So we kept believing till the last,” Sohel said.
