Super Sanga drives Dynamites

Bad pitch? Low Bounce? These factors tend to go down the drains when

you have a set Kumar Sangakkara at the crease; and that's exactly what happened yesterday.

A cleverly stitched 75 off 56 deliveries from the Sri Lankan helped the Dhaka Dynamites post a powerful 166 against the Sylhet Superstars and eventually led them to a 34-run win in Mirpur yesterday.

It was the first 150-plus total in the last four matches and in a way provided the run-stricken tournament with a sense of relief.

While Dynamites did end up posting a high total, their innings began on an all-too-familiar note, with Saikat Ali getting caught in the first over.

Sangakkara, however, immediately got into action and drove Fidel Edwards for four boundaries in the second over, standing firm on the ground and deliciously timing the ball through the covers.

Sadman Islam, who was Dhaka's hero in the previous match, seemed to be inspired at the other end and went for a few hits before being removed in the fifth over. That's when Nasir Hossain joined the Lankan at the crease and the duo put on a 66-run stand to calm the early nerves.

Nasir was the aggressor, scoring three sixes in his 29-ball 33. That the all-rounder was in good touch was evident from the inside-out six that he hit against Nasum Ahmed in the 14th over. He was, however, bowled in the same ove, and that's when Sangakkara took full control.

In the 18th over, he hit Ravi Bopara for two fours and a six down the ground to further escalate the run-rate. By the time he was out in the 19th over, he had already posted the highest score of the third edition of BPL, surpassing Tamim's 69.  

After the exchange, Sylhet's batsmen failed to make the most of their starts. While their top four did manage to get into the double figures, they got out whenever they tried to accelerate, which eventually cost them dearly.

Oddly enough it wasn't either Mustafizur Rahman or Yasir Shah -- the two premier bowlers -- who ran through Sylhet's top order; rather that role was taken on by Mosharraf Hossain and Abul Hasan.

The former duo though did stifle the batters with their accurate line and length and induced a few skiers, which were dropped in the outfield. However, both Shah and Mustafizur returned to mop up the tail with two wickets each as Sylhet were bundled out for 132.