The curtain will rise today on the 11th edition of Bangladesh's premier franchise cricket tournament, the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), with reigning champions Fortune Barishal taking on Durbar Rajshahi. The match is scheduled to start at 1:30 PM (BST) at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur.
Later in the evening, megastar Shakib Khan's team Dhaka Capitals will face off against Rangpur Riders, the 2024 Global Super League champions, in the second match at the same venue at 6:30 PM (BST).
Returning to the BPL after a four-year hiatus, Durbar Rajshahi, formerly known as the Rajshahi Royals, also the runners-up of the 2019-20 season, missed the last three editions of the tournament. Rebranded as Durbar Rajshahi, they are now led by Anamul Haque Bijoy. Their probable playing XI includes Taskin Ahmed, Jishan Alam, Akbar Ali, Sabbir Hossain, Yasir Ali Chowdhury, Hasan Murad, Mohammad Haris, Ryan Burl, Saad Naseem and Lahiru Samarakoon.
Defending champions Fortune Barishal boast a star-studded squad featuring prominent players such as Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid Hridoy, Ebadot Hossain, Rishad Hossain, Pathum Nissanka, Dawid Malan, Mohammad Nabi and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
Although Liton Das led Bangladesh to a 3-0 whitewash against the West Indies in their recent T20 series, his inconsistent form (scores of 0, 3, and 14) prompted Dhaka Capitals to replace him as captain with Thisara Perera, the Sri Lankan all-rounder. Alongside Liton and Perera, Dhaka's squad includes Mustafizur Rahman, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, Sabbir Rahman, Shahadat Hossain Dipu, Mukidul Islam Mugdho, Mehedi Hasan Rana, Johnson Charles, Chaturanga de Silva and Amir Hamza.
On the other hand, Rangpur Riders enter the tournament with great confidence under the leadership of Nurul Hasan Sohan. Their well-balanced squad features players like Mahedi Hasan, Soumya Sarkar, Rakibul Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Rejaur Rahman Raja, Nahid Rana, Irfan Sukkur, Azizul Hakim Tamim, Sediqullah Atal, Khushdil Shah and Curtis Campher.
Chattogram Kings, Dhaka Capitals, Durbar Rajshahi, Fortune Barishal, Khulna Tigers, Rangpur Riders and Sylhet Strikers are going to engage in a total of 46 matches across three venues- Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur, Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram and Sylhet International Cricket Stadium.
The tournament will follow a double round-robin format during the group stage, with each team playing every other team twice. The top four teams in the points table will qualify for the playoffs comprising Qualifier 1, the Eliminator and Qualifier 2. The top two teams will compete in Qualifier 1, with the winner advancing directly to the final. The third and fourth teams will play the Eliminator and the winner will face the loser of Qualifier 1 in Qualifier 2 for the second spot in the final.
The grand finale is slated for February 7 at Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium. The tournament will move to Sylhet from January 6-13, then to Chattogram from January 16-23 before returning to Mirpur for the playoffs and final from January 26 to February 7.
