Gayle, Bravo take struggling Barishal to 129/8 against Dhaka
Dhaka skipper Mahmudullah Riyad used six bowlers and all of them got at least a wicket.
Late cameos from Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo were just enough to take Fortune Barishal close to 130 in the first innings against Minister Group Dhaka at Mirpur on Monday. Barishal eventually finished on 129 for 8.
Barishal had a tough start to their innings, losing three wickets in the first powerplay. Openers Najmul Hossain Shanto and Shykat Ali departed in consecutive overs as Barishal crippled fir 23 for 2 after 5 overs. Towhid Hridoy was the next man to go for a duck.
Skipper Shakib Al Hasan then built a struggling 37-run partnership with Chris Gayle who is playing his first game for thr franchise after arriving in Dhaka on Sunday.
Shakib departed for 23 off 19 with two boundaries and a six to his name. Wicketkeeper Nurul Hasan arrived and departed in no time.
Gayle kept calm on the other end. He built his innings slowly before going all over the Dhaka bowlers. He eventually scored 36 off 30 deliveries where he struck three boundaries and two maximums.
It was all Dwayne Bravo after that. He remained unbeaten on 33 off 26 to take his team to a somewhat decent position.
Dhaka skipper Mahmudullah Riyad used six bowlers and all of them got at least a wicket. Andre Russel and Isuru Udana bagged a brace each while Rubel Hossain, Shuvagata Hom, Hasan Murad and Riyad himself picked up a wicket respectively.
Dhaka will look to bag their first win but Shakib will definitely have other plans to stop them in the second innings.
