In the 18th match of the Bangladesh Premier League 2023, Fortune Barishal batters Shakib Al Hasan and Iftikhar Ahmed made history with their record-breaking partnership against Rangpur Riders. Skipper Shakib joined forces with Iftikhar in the sixth over of the first innings, and the two went on a rampage as Fortune Barishal registered a commanding 67-run victory.
The two shared an unbeaten 192-run stand for the fifth wicket, the highest ever for the fifth wicket in T20 cricket history. Batting at Chattogram on January 19, they broke Adam Hose and Dan Mousley’s previously held record of a 171-run partnership which they had set in 2020 during a Vitality Blast fixture.
Rangpur Riders won the toss and elected to field first. Fortune Barishal openers Anamul Haque and Mehidy Hasan Miraz started off well, but Haris Rauf struck twice in the fifth over and sent Haque and Ibrahim Zadran packing. Hasan Mahmud struck on consecutive balls to dismiss Mehidy Hasan and Mahmudullah in the sixth over as Fortune Barishal finished their powerplay scoring 46 runs and losing four key wickets.
But the entire innings after the powerplay was dominated by Shakib and Iftikhar. Shakib ended up scoring 89* off 43 deliveries, and his knock included nine fours and six sixes. On the other hand, Iftikhar emerged as the star performer as he notched up an unbeaten century off just 45 deliveries, and smacked six fours and nine sixes during his time on the field.
Their knock prompted Fortune Barishal to 238/4 at the end of the innings. Rangpur Riders’ start to the chase was sluggish. Even after some worthy contributions from the middle-order batters, the Riders failed to chase down the total. They managed to score just 171 runs off their allotted 20-over quota and also lost nine wickets in an attempt to win the game. Thanks to the tremendous efforts from Shakib and Iftikhar, Fortune Barishal emerged victorious by 67 runs, and the two wrote their names in the history books with their record-breaking partnership.
