‘Spicy’ contest as Barishal, Rangpur face off for spot in final

Tamim Iqbal of Fortune Barishal and Shakib Al Hasan of Rangpur Riders

In a bid to confirm the place in the final of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), Fortune Barishal will take on Rangpur Riders in the second qualifier Wednesday evening.

The match that turned out to be a virtual semi-final will start at 6.30 pm at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.

Barishal came to the Qualifier-2 after winning the Eliminator game thrashing Chattogram Challengers by seven wickets.

Rangpur, however, despite a James Neesham special failed to make it the final straightway after losing the game to Comilla Victorians by six wickets.

Barishal and Rangpur games, however, paved a way for a summit clash with Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan facing off against each other once again.

The strained relationship between the two big stars of Bangladesh cricket is now public, which further makes the contest spicy.

Also the fans of the two stars are now severely divided as they were seen to abuse their favoured-cricketer’s competitor on and off the field, which is now often crossing the limit.

Both Shakib and Tamim were subject to the abuse of the rowdy fans in their first and second leg clash in the group phase.

Tamim’s Fortune Barishal though beat Shakib’s Rangpur by five wickets in the opening game, the latter took the revenge by defeating Barishal by one wicket in a thrilling contest in the second leg.

In the second-leg, Tamim was seen mocking Shakib’s celebration after taking the catch of the star all-rounder which further sparked the fans to become involved in an offensive online war.

However, while the relationship between the two stars promises a titanic clash, the Qualifier-2 game will matter most regardless of their personal issue.

The winner will advance to the final to face the tournament’s most successful team, Comilla Victorians.