Babar Azam plays match-winning knock in his first BPL game

Rangpur Riders secured a triumph over Sylhet Strikers, propelled by an outstanding performance from former Pakistan captain Babar Azam, in the ongoing Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) 2024.

The excitement was noticeable when Rangpur captain Nurul Hasan Sohan confidently announced Babar's inclusion in the playing XI during the toss, confirming, "Obviously King Babar is in for the match."

Upon being instructed to bat first, Sylhet Strikers were restricted to a total of 120 runs, having lost eight wickets in the first innings.

Babar made his presence felt when he executed a direct hit to remove Dushan Hemantha in the final over.

Meanwhile, the Rangpur Riders faced a challenging situation from the start of the chase as they lost six wickets at the score of 39.

However, Babar and Azmatullah Omarzai combined efforts to forge a match-winning partnership of 89 runs, ultimately steering Rangpur Riders to triumph in a closely-contested match. Their robust partnership and proficient batting paved the way for an exhilarating victory by four wickets as they achieved the target in 18.2 overs.

Babar played a crucial role, staying unbeaten with a well-executed 56 runs from 49 deliveries, featuring six boundaries, at a striking rate of 114.28.

Full list of Pakistan players featuring in BPL 2024

Chattogram Challengers

Muhammad Haris, Mohammad Hasnain

Comilla Victorians

Mohammad Rizwan, Iftikhar Ahmad, Zaman Khan, Khushdil Shah, Naseem Shah

Durdanto Dhaka

Saim Ayub, Usman Qadir

Fortune Barishal

Fakhar Zaman, Mohammed Amir, Abbas Afridi, Shoaib Malik

Khulna Tigers

Faheem Ashraf

Rangpur Riders

Babar Azam, Ihsanullah

Sylhet Strikers

None

It must be noted that many Pakistan players have not received NOCs to feature in this tournament due to PCB's rule of allowing players for only two leagues in a year.