Comilla Victorians went second in the Bangladesh Premier League points table after beating Fortune Barishal by five wickets in Mirpur Tuesday as the race for the top two spots enters the final stretch.
The top two finishers after the league phase will contest Qualifier 1, and the losing side from that game will get another crack as they will face the winner of the Eliminator for a place in the final.
Sylhet Strikers currently top the standings with 16 points, same as Comilla, who have an inferior net run rate.
Both the sides have played 11 games each, alongside third placed Barishal, who have 14 points.
Rangpur Riders also have 14 points from 10 matches with only two double-header matchdays left before the playoffs.
On a low-scoring day at the home of cricket, Shakib al Hasan's Barishal were all out for 121 in 19.1 overs after Comilla decided to field first.
Only Mahmudullah (36 off 26) stood out from a disappointing top-order performance while Karim Janat chipped in with a 26-ball 32.
Seamer Mukidul Islam Mugdho starred for the Victorians bagging five wickets conceding 23 runs.
In reply, holders Comilla reached their target with nine balls to spare; opener Liton Das top-scoring with 36 and West Indian all-rounder Andre Russell remaining not out on a 16-ball 30, featuring two fours and three sixes, on his BPL 2023 bow.
Dhaka end campaign with defeat to Chattogram
Ziaur Rahman came up with a superb all-round performance as Chattogram Challengers cruised to only their third victory, sealing a 15-run win over Dhaka Dominators in a low-scoring affair.
Both the teams had already been eliminated from the last four race and therefore it turned out to be just an inconsequential match, reports BSS.
Thanks to the victory, Chattogram moved to sixth position from the bottom of the table.
Ziaur struck an unbeaten 20-ball 34 before snapping up 2/15 to be instrumental behind the victory.
His knock included three fours and two sixes and helped the port city outfit post 118/8.
Usman Khan was the other notable contributor with 30.
Riding on the duo, the Challengers managed to go past the 100-run mark which looked unlikely at one stage.
Left-arm spinner Arafat Sunny claimed 4/22 to be the most successful bowler for the Dominators.
However Sunny's bowling performance couldn't inspire the batters as they put up a wretched batting display to get restricted to 103/9.
Skipper Nasir Hossain made team high 24 while opener Soumya Sarkar scored 21.
Curtis Campher bagged 3/15 to play a key role in defending the paltry total.
He was ably supported by Ziaur who took 2/15.
