Saif Hassan and Mohammad Naim put on a strong partnership of 164 runs for the second wicket, leading Central Zone to a convincing five-wicket victory over North Zone in the final of the Bangladesh Cricket League at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur today.
Central Zone, having already defeated North Zone in a previous league match, dominated the final match both with the bat and the ball to secure their second BCL one-day trophy.
North Zone was bowled out for 238 runs in 49.3 overs, and Central lost an early wicket when Jishan Alam (14 off 17) was dismissed cheaply by Nahid Rana.
However, Naim and Saif stood firm against the North Zone bowlers and took control of the game. Saif reached his fifty off 49 balls, while Naim followed suit, reaching his half-century off 63 deliveries.
As the duo seemed set for centuries, North Zone fought back with Rishad Hossain dismissing Naim for 78 off 87 balls and Saif falling to Shoriful Islam for 87 off 78 balls.
Despite losing a couple more wickets towards the end, Central reached the target with 12 overs to spare.
In the North Zone innings, Taskin Ahmed and Ripon Mondol made early breakthroughs, with opener Habibur Rahman falling for five off 17 balls and Tanzid Tamim departing for 23 off 22 balls.
Despite a 52-run partnership between Nazmul Hossain Shanto and Tawhid Hridoy for the third wicket, North Zone struggled as Saif removed Shanto for 35 and Rakibul Hasan took two quick wickets to leave North Zone at 123 for five.
Hridoy then combined with Sabbir Rahman for a 63-run partnership, with Hridoy reaching his fifty off 69 balls and falling just short of a century, getting dismissed for 96 off 98 balls.
Ripon was the standout bowler for Central Zone with figures of four for 41 in 9.3 overs, while Taskin claimed two wickets for 56 runs in his 10 overs.
