Rajshahi to face Rangpur in Notun Kuri boys' cricket final

 
Rajshahi Zone and Rangpur Zone stormed into the final of the boys' cricket event of Notun Kuri Sports after winning their respective semi-finals at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur on Thursday. 

The two sides will battle for the title at 9:00am on Friday, while Mymensingh Zone and Dhaka Zone will contest the girls' final.

Rain once again played spoilsport on the fourth day of the competition, with only one of the four scheduled semi-finals being completed over the full allotted overs.

In the first boys' semi-final, Rangpur booked their place in the title decider with an eight-run victory over Faridpur under the Duckworth-Lewis Method. Batting first, Faridpur posted 89 for 4 in their allotted 10 overs. Rangpur raced to 52 without major trouble in five overs before rain halted play. With no further action possible, Rangpur were declared winners by the DLS method. Captain Abdul Qayyum Shakib was named Player of the Match.

Rajshahi produced a commanding all-round display in the second semi-final, defeating Sylhet by 57 runs. Sadid led the charge with a fluent 53, while Sabith Anam Nirob (22), Tahmid Hasan (19) and Tamjid Hasan (11) helped Rajshahi amass 125 for 4 in 10 overs. Sylhet never recovered in the chase, finishing on 68 for 7.

In the girls' competition, Mymensingh cruised into the final with a comprehensive 10-wicket win over Chattogram. Sadia Afrin Jannat earned the Player of the Match award for her impressive performance.

Dhaka completed the final line-up by defeating Rajshahi by eight wickets in the second girls' semi-final, setting up a title clash against Mymensingh.