United News of Bangladesh

Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman has become the country’s highest wicket-taker in the Indian Premier League (IPL), surpassing Shakib Al Hasan’s long-standing record during Delhi Capitals’ match against Punjab Kings on Friday night. Fizz picked up 3 wickets for 33 runs in his four overs at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur, taking his IPL wicket tally to 65 from 60 innings. Shakib, who played 70 IPL innings across nine seasons, had 63 wickets to his name. The left-arm pacer began the match with 62 wickets. He drew level with Shakib by dismissing Punjab opener Prabhsimran Singh in his first over, caught by Tristan Stubbs. Later, in the 16th over, Mustafizur sent back Shashank Singh – once again caught by Stubbs – to break the record. He added one more to his tally in the final over, removing Marco Jansen, with Stubbs completing a third catch behind the stumps. IPL uncertain for Fizz due to NOC issues, overlapped matches Though he narrowly missed a fourth wicket when a top-edge from Marcus Stoinis landed safely due to a misjudged attempt between two fielders, Mustafizur’s spell was a standout in a high-scoring game. Despite Punjab posting 206 for 8, Delhi Capitals chased down the target with three balls and six wickets to spare. Mustafizur joined Delhi late in the tournament and played just three matches, finishing with four wickets. The cutter master now expected to join the Bangladesh team in Pakistan for a three-match T20I series.

Sai Sudharsan delivered a stunning performance on Sunday, scoring an unbeaten 108 off just 61 balls as the Gujarat Titans cruised to a dominant 10-wicket win over the Delhi Capitals, securing their place in the Indian Premier League (IPL) playoffs. Opening the innings, Sudharsan and captain Shubman Gill put together an unbroken 205-run partnership — the third-highest opening stand in IPL history — as Gujarat comfortably chased down the target in 19 overs. Gill contributed a commanding 93 not out from 53 balls. Their effort overshadowed Lokesh Rahul’s impressive 112* from 65 balls — his fifth IPL century — which helped Delhi post 199-3 in their 20 overs. The loss marked Delhi’s fifth defeat in seven matches. With this win, Gujarat Titans moved to the top of the IPL standings with 18 points from 12 games. The result also ensured playoff berths for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (second with 17 points) and Punjab Kings (third with 17 points), as Gujarat's victory over fifth-placed Delhi widened the gap. Delhi has 13 points and is a point behind fourth-placed Mumbai Indians, who occupy the fourth and final playoff spot, with two regular season matches remaining. Lucknow Super Giants is currently seventh with 10 points from only 11 games. Punjab beat Rajasthan Royals by 10 runs earlier Sunday to secure its playoff spot. Rahul’s century in vain Rahul scored his fifth IPL century overall as Delhi rode on a blistering knock to present a challenging score. Mustafiz to leave for IPL after playing first T20I vs UAE He hit 14 fours and four sixes, and put on a vital 90 off 52 balls with Abhishek Porel (30). Axar Patel and Tristan Stubbs also had cameos – but there wasn’t a second major contribution alongside Rahul, who reached 100 off 60 balls. In reply, Gujarat relied on its in-form openers to confirm a spot in the knockouts. The duo dominated Delhi’s bowling, hitting 11 sixes and 15 fours altogether. Gill scored 50 off 33 balls, including four sixes, and then added another three. Sudharsan hit 12 fours and four sixes. Three of those sixes came after he scored 50 off 30 balls and helped him gallop to a second IPL century.   Punjab wins Nehal Wadhera scored 70 off 37 balls to lead Punjab Kings to a 10-run win over Rajasthan Royals. Wadhera smashed five sixes and five fours in his second half-century of the season in Punjab’s 219-5 in 20 overs. Shashank Singh’s 59 not out off 30 balls also helped the Kings cross the 200-mark. Left-arm spinner Harpreet Brar then took 3-22 in four overs as Rajasthan’s chase lost momentum despite half-centuries from Yashasvi Jaisal and Dhruv Jurel. The Royals were restricted to 209-7 for a 10th loss this season. Wadhera took charge of the innings after Punjab was down to 34-3 in 3.1 overs, rebuilding it with a 67-run partnership off 44 balls with skipper Shreyas Iyer, who scored 30 off 25 balls. Wadhera reached 50 off 25 balls, and then added 58 off 33 with Shashank Singh which set up the base for a 200-plus score. Singh hit five fours and three sixes, while also finding an able partner in Azmatullah Omarzai, who scored 21 not out off nine balls. The duo added 60 runs off the last four overs. In reply, Rajasthan made a quick-fire start. Jaiswal took 22 runs off the first over, and added 76 off 29 balls with his teenage opening partner Vaibhav Suryavanshi. The latter scored 40 off 15 balls, with four sixes, before he was caught off Brar in the fifth over. Jaiswal carried on despite the breakthrough, scoring 50 off 25 balls, before he holed out too – again off Brar in the ninth over. Rajasthan started losing steam afterward with Sanju Samson (20) and Riyan Parag (13) unable to keep up the momentum.    

Both the Indian Premier League (IPL) and Pakistan Super League (PSL) for 2025 are set to resume on May 17, following a week-long suspension caused by cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan. However, the revised schedules have forced adjustments to other international commitments, including Bangladesh’s planned tour of Pakistan. The PSL will conclude on May 25, with four remaining group-stage matches taking place in Rawalpindi and the playoffs and final scheduled in Lahore. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) confirmed the resumption via a social media post by Chairman Mohsin Naqvi. “Get ready for 8 thrilling matches starting 17th May, leading up to the Grand Final on 25th May,” Mohsin said.  Foreign players exit IPL, resumption plan in limbo  The revised PSL schedule now overlaps with Bangladesh’s previously scheduled T20I series in Pakistan, which was set to begin the same day as the PSL final. BCB has acknowledged that the tour will not go ahead as originally planned and confirmed it is in “active and ongoing discussions” with the PCB. Meanwhile, the IPL will resume play across six Indian cities: Bengaluru, Jaipur, Delhi, Lucknow, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad. The final has been rescheduled for June 3. A total of 17 matches remain, including 13 league games and four playoffs. The delayed IPL will also impact the England-West Indies ODI series, the India A tour of England, and player availability for the World Test Championship final between Australia and South Africa, starting June 11.  Nahid and Rishad to exit PSL amid tensions between India and Pakistan Both leagues now face the logistical challenge of recalling overseas players, many of whom had flown home. While some franchises are confident about player returns, the PCB is considering a replacement draft for the PSL to ensure balanced squads.  India tour of Bangladesh, Asia Cup in doubt after IPL halt

Rain washed out Sunrisers Hyderabad’s meager hopes of making the Indian Premier League playoffs on Monday. Skipper Pat Cummins gave Hyderabad a strong start by claiming three early wickets with the new ball, restricting Delhi Capitals to 133 for 7. However, heavy rain and an unplayable outfield forced the match to be abandoned. With the game called off, both sides were awarded one point each. The result officially eliminated last year’s finalists, Hyderabad, from playoff contention—making them the third team to exit the race, following Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals. Delhi, despite another poor showing from its top-order batters, was fortunate to escape with a point and now sits fifth on the table, still in the hunt for a playoff spot. Delhi stumbles against Cummins Cummins perfectly read the tricky grassless pitch and ran Delhi into all sorts of trouble with three wickets off his first 13 balls after he won the toss and elected to field. Bangladesh A crush New Zealand A by 7 wickets to take lead He had Karun Nair caught behind off the first ball of the match and Faf du Plessis was beaten by a short ball and edged behind to Ishan Kishan, who kept wickets for the first time this season in place of Heinrich Klaasen. Cummins, who took the new ball after Mohammed Shami was left out, made it 15-3 when Kishan took a smart running catch at square leg after Abhishek Porel top-edged an attempted flick. Cummins added a brilliant catch over his right shoulder when he back-pedalled from mid-off to dismiss Delhi captain Axar Patel. Kishan's fourth catch made it 29-5 when Lokesh Rahul edged Jaydev Unadkat. Tristan Stubbs, 41 not out, and impact player Ashutosh Sharma, 41, helped Delhi cross 100 but all of Hyderabad's sterling work in the field was washed away by the rain.      

Prabhsimran Singh powered Punjab Kings to a 37-run victory over Lucknow Super Giants on Sunday, scoring a commanding 91 off just 48 deliveries and helping his team climb to second place in the Indian Premier League standings. Singh notched his fourth half-century of the season, smashing seven sixes and six fours in a blistering innings that propelled Punjab to a total of 236 for 5 in their 20 overs. Captain Shreyas Iyer added valuable support with a quickfire 45 off 25 balls, which included two sixes. Lucknow’s chase finished at 199-7 despite Ayush Badoni’s 74 off 40 balls, and the Super Giants took a blow in its bid for a top-four place. Lucknow is now seventh after 11 games – with five wins and six losses. Punjab has 15 points from 11 games and sits between leader Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Mumbai Indians. Gujarat Titans completes the top four. Kane finally wins his first career title as Bayern Munich becomes Bundesliga champion Earlier, Kolkata Knight Riders beat Rajasthan Royals by one run to keep its top-four bid alive. Stand-in skipper Riyan Parag smashed five sixes in one over but still finished on the losing team as Rajasthan’s chase fell agonizingly short. Parag hit eight sixes overall in his 45-ball 95. Rajasthan finished on 205-8 in its 20 overs with Varun Chakravarthy (2-32), Harshit Rana (2-41) and Moeen Ali (2-43) taking six wickets between them. This was after Andre Russell’s 57 not out off 25 balls propelled Kolkata to a total of 206-4. Kolkata is now sixth in the points’ table, with five wins in 11 games, and can still make the top four. Rajasthan is eighth with its ninth loss in 12 games, and was already eliminated along with Chennai Super Kings.    

Mumbai Indians surged into the top three of the Indian Premier League standings on Wednesday with a dominant seven-wicket victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad. Rohit Sharma, stepping up as an impact player, smashed his second consecutive half-century, scoring 70 runs to lead Mumbai to 146-3 in just 15.4 overs. The five-time champions, who had a slow start to the season, have now climbed to third place in the points table. Remaining 15 minutes of Federation Cup final to be played on Tuesday Heinrich Klaasen’s 71 off 44 balls had earlier saved Hyderabad from complete destruction to score 143-8 with new ball bowlers Trent Boult (4-26) and Deepak Chahar (2-12) doing the most damage. It’s a remarkable turnaround for Mumbai, which won only one of its first five games before bouncing back with four straight wins. Hyderabad is at No. 9, just ahead of last-place Chennai Super Kings. Sharma sets sixes record Sharma had a quiet start to the season with a top-score of 26 in his first six games. But the seasoned T20 batter got back into his groove when he smacked unbeaten 76 against Chennai at home three days ago. Sharma continued where he left off and despite the slowness of the wicket he smacked three sixes and eight fours in his fluent half-century. Sharma also became the highest six hitter for Mumbai with 259 sixes and surpassed Kieron Pollard’s Mumbai record of 258. Ryan Rickelton (11) yet again couldn’t capitalize on a good start and offered a one-handed return catch to Jaydev Unadkat, who had replaced struggling Mohammed Shami in Hyderabad’s playing XI. Sharma then shared two half-century stands with Will Jacks (22) and Yadav before chipping a regulation catch at mid-wicket when Mumbai was just 14 runs away from victory. Yadav summed up a dismal night for Hyderabad when the ball burst through the hands of Nitesh Kumar Reddy at deep mid-wicket for a four as the fielder seemed to have lost the ball in the floodlights and it crossed the ropes. “Glad the boys are taking the momentum in the right way,” Mumbai skipper Hardik Pandya said. “I’ve felt, once everyone starts clicking in this team there will be domination. ... Overall, a wonderful win.” Boult subdues Hyderabad Hyderabad’s top-order had showed early sparks in the tournament when it not only racked up 286 against Rajasthan Royals in its opening game but also chased down 246 against Punjab Kings at home last week. Other than those two bright moments, Hyderabad batters had mostly struggled this season. Head fell for a four-ball duck when he top-edged Boult’s length delivery outside the off stump and Abhishek Sharma was caught at cover point when he got deceived by left-armer’s slow knuckle ball. In between those two wickets, Chahar had removed Ishan Kishan in a bizarre fashion. On-field umpire first declared Chahar’s leg-side delivery a wide but changed his decision and lifted his finger when he saw Kishan walking back. However, Ultra edge later showed on television that the ball had missed the bat as Kishan got strangled for the second time this season. Klaasen revived the innings by combining in a 99-run stand with Abhinav Manohar (43) off 63 balls before Jasprit Bumrah completed 300 wickets in T20 cricket when Klaasen missed out the low full toss and was caught at deep mid-wicket in the penultimate over. Boult, who had removed openers Travis Head for nought and Abhishek Sharma for eight in his opening spell, bagged two more wickets in the last over when Manohar got hit wicket and then clean bowled captain Pat Cummins with a perfect yorker. “Never got going,” Hyderabad captain Pat Cummins said. “After a couple of wickets, you have to find a way to steady the ship, (but) couldn’t do that.”  

Punjab Kings kept Royal Challengers Bengaluru winless at home in a rain-shortened Indian Premier League game on Friday. Light drizzle reduced the Twenty20 game to 14 overs a side and Bengaluru was in danger of being bowled out for its lowest IPL total of 49 before Tim David's 26-ball unbeaten 50 lifted the home team to 95-9. Punjab stuttered briefly until Nehal Wadhera smacked three sixes and three boundaries and carried Punjab to 98-5 in 12.1 overs for a five-wicket win. With a fifth win in seven games, Punjab was second in the table on run rate. Bengaluru was fourth thanks to four away wins. But it has still to win at home. Earlier, Punjab fast bowlers Arshdeep Singh, Marco Jansen and Xavier Bartlett shared five wickets between them. Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal bagged 2-11 following 4-28 against Kolkata Knight Riders. Arshdeep made the first inroads with his short balls when Phil Salt (4) and Virat Kohli (1) fell to pulls.   Wicketkeeper Josh Inglis sprinted to square leg and made a scintillating diving catch to get Salt, and Jansen grabbed a sharp catch of Kohli at mid-on. South African left-armer Jansen sliced through the middle order with 2-10 as Bengaluru slipped to 42-7 in the eighth over. Pakistan clinch Women's Cricket World Cup spot after four straight wins David smashed spinner Harpreet Brar (2-25) for three successive sixes in the last over and completed his half-century with two runs off the final ball after the leg-spinner overstepped and conceded a no-ball.  

Fans have seen something unusual in the Indian Premier League (IPL): umpires measuring bats during matches using a special tool called a gauge. This has led many to ask why. According to the reports of the media who cover IPL so closely, the reason is fairness. The IPL wants to make sure that the batters and the bowlers get a fair chance to prove their mettle. And there were always some concerns that some players might be using bats that are bigger than the official rules allow, giving them an unfair advantage. Cricket's official rules (specifically Law 5) limit how wide a bat can be (10.8cm), how thick its edges are (4cm), and its overall depth (6.7cm). The new checks make sure bats used in the IPL stick to these rules. Another common question hovers in the minds of the fans is: How do the checks work? Before this season, bat checks were less strict. They happened before match days, not all players were checked, and a player might use a different bat in the actual game. But now, the process is more thorough. On-field umpires carry a bat gauge – a template with a cutout matching the legal bat dimensions. Every batter's bat is checked as they come to the crease, including openers and any replacement bats brought out. The result of the checks is clear— if a bat is too big and doesn't pass through the gauge, it cannot be used in that match. Teams were told about this rule change before it started and were even given gauges so players could check their own equipment. So far, only a couple of bats have failed the test. If a bat is found to be oversized, the player simply can't use it in the game. Rupganj, Abahani, Gulshan register wins in first round of Super League in DPL Interestingly, unlike some other cricket leagues (like in England, where teams can lose points for illegal bats), the IPL currently doesn't have any further penalties like fines or point deductions. The main goal seems to be preventing the use of oversized bats during play to keep the contest fair. Some players were reportedly surprised by the strict checks, with one player finding none of his bats passed the test. This move came at a time when IPL was seeing more runs that might have left the bowlers feeling helpless.

A historically low score at home for the Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League saw them suffer a fifth straight defeat on Friday. Sunil Narine starred with both ball and bat as Kolkata Knight Riders cruised to an eight-wicket victory with almost 10 overs to spare. New Zealand's Glenn Phillips ruled out of IPL with groin injury Although Chennai narrowly avoided their all-time lowest IPL score of 79, the 103-9 they posted at Chepauk was hardly less humiliating — especially just a day after Mahendra Singh Dhoni resumed captaincy in place of the injured Ruturaj Gaikwad. Kolkata’s spin trio — Narine, Varun Chakravarthy, and Moeen Ali — choked the hosts with combined figures of 12-1-55-6. Narine, who claimed 3-13, then blasted 44 off only 18 balls, including five sixes and two fours, to help Kolkata reach 107-2 in just 10.1 overs. The commanding chase propelled Kolkata to third in the standings, trailing the Gujarat Titans and the unbeaten Delhi Capitals by six points. Chennai, meanwhile, slumped just above bottom-ranked Sunrisers Hyderabad after an unprecedented third successive home defeat. Narine finishes it quickly Having shone with the ball, Narine wasted no time in leading Kolkata’s swift pursuit, ably supported by Quinton de Kock, who hammered three sixes during his 23-run cameo. The left-handed duo took on pace bowler Khaleel Ahmed (0-40) and didn’t spare Ravichandran Ashwin either, who gave away 30 runs in his three overs. After De Kock and Narine were dismissed bowled, Ajinkya Rahane and Rinku Singh sealed what became Chennai’s worst defeat in terms of balls remaining. Chennai’s batting collapses Dhoni opted to bat first after losing the toss, and Kolkata capitalised, fielding a spin-heavy attack perfectly tailored for the conditions. Ali, included specifically to counter the left-handed opening pair of Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra, delivered a maiden in the powerplay and removed Conway, who was trapped lbw attempting a reckless reverse sweep. Pakistan slaps one-year PSL ban on South African Corbin Bosch for breaching contract Ravindra, struggling to settle, offered a leading edge to Harshit Rana. Vijay Shankar, who top-scored with 29, survived two dropped chances before finally holing out in the 10th over to backward square leg off Chakravarthy. With Gaikwad absent, Rahul Tripathi stepped in but failed to pick Narine, while Ashwin, promoted up the order, lasted just seven balls for a single run. Impact substitute Deepak Hooda couldn’t revive Chennai’s innings either, falling for a four-ball duck to a catch at midwicket, and Dhoni was trapped lbw by Narine for 1. At 75-8, Chennai were staring at the ignominy of their lowest ever IPL score. Shivam Dube, unbeaten on 31, spared them that fate, but the damage was done. Chennai managed just three boundaries after the eighth over.

Gujarat Titans’ batter Glenn Phillips of New Zealand has been ruled out of the remainder of the Indian Premier League due to a groin injury. Phillips sustained the injury when he came on as a substitute fielder during Gujarat’s game against Sunrisers Hyderabad on April 6. The IPL said in a statement on Saturday that Phillips has “returned to New Zealand.” Phillips did not have a chance to start in any of the five Gujarat games this season. He is the second overseas player of the franchise to leave the tournament early after Kagiso Rabada of South Africa returned home on April 3 to deal with a personal matter. It was not clear when Rabada will rejoin the team. Two fans die before Colo Colo vs Fortaleza match in Chile Gujarat has eight points from four wins in five games and is joint leader with Delhi Capitals, which has won all of its four games and also has eight points. Jos Buttler of England, Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan and Sherfane Rutherford of the West Indies are the overseas players who have played for Gujarat this season. It also has South African fast bowler Gerald Coetzee and Afghanistan’s Karim Janat as overseas players in its ranks.