Rajin Saleh made his last first-class match a memorable one as he top-scored with 67 for Sylhet against Dhaka as the former ended the day on 220/6 in their National Cricket League tier two game at Sheikh Kamal International Cricket Stadium Academy Ground in Cox's Bazar.
It was a typically gritty innings that Rajin had become well known for in the international arena as he faced 201 deliveries to score those runs.
His innings included seven fours and one six.
Sylhet v Dhaka
Sylhet batted first but soon found themselves on 40/3 before another veteran Alok Kapali put on a 40-run partnership with Rajin, to take the score to 80, before Kapali departed for 28.
Rajin then put up another good partnership with Shahanur Rahman to take the score to 142 before Shahanur too departed for 29.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Jaker Ali stayed unbeaten on 40 as the second-highest scorer of the day.
Pacer Shahadat Hossain and spinner Shuvagata Hom were the best bowlers of the day with figures of 2/52 and 2/33 respectively.
Barisal v Rajshahi
Mohor Sheikh’s five-for, followed by Junaid Siddique’s unbeaten half-century, ensured Rajshahi finished the day on top against a strong Barisal team with the likes of Mosaddek Hossain, Fazle Mahmud Rabbi, Kamrul Islam Rabbi and Shahriar Nafees in the line-up at Shaheed Kamruzzaman Stadium in Rajshahi.
Fielding first, Rajshahi bundled out Barisal for just 97 where only 25 by Al-Amin was the highest score.
Mohor (5/24), Shafiqul Islam (3/20) and Farhad Reza (2/42) shared 10 wickets among them.
In reply, Junaid Siddique’s 72 not out from 130 deliveries gave Rajshahi the lead as they ended the day on 124/6 with a 27-run lead.
Kamrul (2/46) and Monir Hossain (2/8) were the pick of the bowlers for Barisal on a day where 16 wickets fell.
Former Bangladesh captain Rajin Saleh announced his retirement from professional cricket in the sidelines of the first Test match between host @BCBtigers and @ZimCricketv at Sylhet International Cricket Stadium Saturdayhttps://t.co/00c3fqumyY#RAJINSALEH #RAJIN #SALEH #BCBTIGERS
— Dhaka Tribune Sports (@Sport_DT) November 3, 2018
Dhaka Metropolis v Chittagong
An unbeaten century from Marshall Ayub dominated proceedings as Dhaka Metro took ascendency against Chittagong, scoring 265/5 after day one at Sheikh Kamal International Cricket Stadium in Cox's Bazar.
Marshall played a captain’s knock, leading from the front and scoring 110 from 211 deliveries.
This is his 17th century in first-class cricket.
There were no other big scores in the innings as most batsmen got starts and scored double digit, apart from Mohammad Ashraful, who got out for nine.
Nayeem Hasan (2/94) and Shakhawat Hossain (2/76) were the best bowlers for Chittagong.
Khulna v Rangpur
Rangpur will be the slightly happier of the two teams as they took eight Khulna wickets giving away 217 runs after day one at Shaheed Chandu Stadium in Bogra.
Moinul Islam, who is not out on 48, has been the highest scorer for Khulna while Robiul Haque was the pick of the bowlers for Rangpur with 3/54.
20TH NCL, ROUND 6, DAY 1
Tier 1
Rajshahi 124/6 in 44 overs (Junaid 72*, Jahurul 25) lead Barisal 97 in 38.2 overs (Mohor 5/24) by 27 runs
Khulna 217/8 in 74 overs (Moinul 48*, Ziaur 40) v Rangpur
Tier 2
Dhaka Metropolis 265/5 in 90 overs (Marshall 110, Azmir 35) v Chittagong
Sylhet 220/6 in 91 overs (Rajin 67, Jaker 40) v Dhaka
