Mohammed Sporting Club ended a 17-year-long wait as they brushed aside Abahani Limited to lift the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League (DPL) 2025-26 title. Here's the final wrap of the DPL 2025-26 that ended on June 12.
Key takeaways: Mohammedan smash 406
Mohammedan remained true to their pre-season billing as favourites after completing their first DPL title since 2009-10. They were tied on 16 points with defending champions Abahani Limited and Prime Bank Cricket Club on the final day.
Mohammedan beat Abahani by 63 runs (DLS method) after rain ended the game early at the BKSP-3 ground in Savar. The scoreline looks tame compared to Mohammedan originally setting Abahani a mammoth 407-run target. It is the first time that Mohammedan have crossed the 400-run barrier in their history. Prime Bank lost their last league game by nine runs to Dhaka Leopards in the neighbouring BKPS-4 ground.
Best batters: Shahadat Hossain and Towhid Hridoy
Prime Bank's Shahadat Hossain and Mohammedan captain Towhid Hridoy finished as the league's only batters to cross the 500-run mark. Hridoy scored his 528 runs at an average of 88.0 and a strike-rate of 122.79, while Shahadat topped the run-charts with 534.
Among the uncapped batters, Mahfijul Islam of Agrani Bank Cricket Club, Rupganj Tigers' Md Abdullah and Legends of Rupganj's Irfan Sukkur were the most impressive batters. They scored more than 400 runs, with healthy averages; Mahfijul and Irfan struck two centuries each.
Best bowlers: Aliss Al Islam and Abdul Gaffar Saqlain
Mystery spinner Aliss Al Islam finished with 24 wickets at an average of 13.16 with best figures of 6 for 21, which included a hat-trick. Aliss was called up to the Bangladesh Emerging Team for the white-ball matches against Zimbabwe A recently. Abdul Gaffar Saqlain, the second-highest wicket-taker with 21 scalps, retained his place in Bangladesh's T20I side against Australia.
Best match
Rupganj Tigers Cricket ensured their survival in next season's DPL with a last-ball win against Agrani Bank Cricket Club in the penultimate round of matches on June 8. Chasing 266 to win, fifties from Abdul Mazid and Md Abdullah took them to a strong position. Three quick wickets towards the end nearly derailed them until the veteran Muktar Ali struck a last-ball six to take them home. He struck four sixes in total in his unbeaten 17-ball 32.
Points to ponder
Brothers Union were relegated when they gave Agrani Bank a walkover on June 5. The players reportedly didn't take the field in protest of unpaid wages. Gulshan Cricket Club joined them in relegation, after finishing the league on five points. They tied their last game against Rupganj Tigers.
Players to watch
Mystery spinners Aliss and Md Rubel were among the wickets, while hard-hitting opener Habibur Rahman Sohan turned heads with his big-hitting. Allrounder Moin Khan was impressive with 336 runs and 14 wickets in the competition for Dhaka Leopards. Young Samiun Basir earned a Bangladesh Emerging call-up after his all-round show too.