Battle of all-rounders for BPL crown

The star-studded Dhaka Dynamites will face the high-flying Rajshahi Kings in the final of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) Twenty20's fourth edition in Mirpur’s Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium on Friday. Both the teams have plenty of all-rounders in their squad and it promises to be an exciting final that begins at 6:30pm. Dhaka have a slight advantage, thanks to their fan support and strong line-up, be it bat or ball. Dhaka have played 13 matches in the tournament so far, winning nine of them. Two of their losses came against Rajshahi while the other two came against Khulna Titans. Dhaka have very good batting power in their line-up. West Indies opening batsman Evin Lewis is favourite to open the innings alongside the in-form Mehedi Maruf. Lewis is regarded as “mini-Gayle” and has already played an explosive innings of 75 runs from 34 balls against Rangpur Riders in his first BPL 4 outing. Sri Lankan legend Kumar Sangakkara is also a heavy presence in the top-order. As far as Dhaka's bowling is concerned, captain Shakib al Hasan is their main man. Windies all-rounder Andre Russell has also played well, especially against Khulna in the first qualifier. Another Windies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo is also in good form with the ball, bowling economically more often than not in the death overs. Local players like Nasir Hossain and Mosaddek Hossain can also take wickets in crucial stages of a game. Pacer Abu Jayed Rahi is in good rhythm and it is largely due to his performance that Dhaka are barely missing the injured Mohammad Shahid. [caption id="attachment_39075" align="aligncenter" width="1024"] An explosive knock from New Zealand all-rounder James Franklin will stand Rajshahi in good stead while the Kiwi is also more than capable of chipping in with the ball DHAKA TRIBUNE[/caption] On the other hand, Rajshahi have played some smart cricket so far defeating some big teams to reach the final. Captain Darren Sammy has inspired his side on many an occasion and their team spirit is pretty high at the moment. Sammy has played some terrific innings right throughout the tournament, often snatching wins from the jaws of defeat. Particularly, his innings against title contender Chittagong Vikings in the Eliminator was one of the tournament's highlights. So a batsman like Sammy coming in the middle order is a great weapon to have. Opener Mominul Haque is in good touch while No 3 batsman Sabbir Rahman played a responsible innings against Khulna in the second qualifier. Sabbir has scored the only century of BPL 4 so far, against Barisal Bulls in the first phase in Dhaka. The right-hander will once again have to play a key role for his side in the final. Experienced overseas all-rounders Samit Patel and James Franklin, meanwhile, have the ability to contribute with both bat and ball. Besides the foreign duo, Rajshahi also have quality local all-rounders in their disposal. Youngsters like Mehedi Hasan Miraz and Afif Hossian have bowled well recently. Afif came in to the party by becoming the youngest bowler in T20 history to take five wickets, that too on debut, when he achieved the feat against Chittagong. Miraz is also in good form with the ball while the experienced Farhad Reza could prove to be handy as well. All in all, the stage is set for a blockbuster final. All that remains now is for the action to begin.