BPL 2019-20: Imrul Kayes, Chadwick Walton power Chattogram Challengers to 5-wicket win in tournament opener

Chattogram Challengers kicked off their Bangladesh Premier League 2019 campaign on a winning note by defeating Sylhet Thunder in the first match of the tournament. Imrul Kayes (61) and Chadwick Walton (49*) starred for the Challengers as they defeated Thunder by 5 wickets.

Rayad Emrit had won the toss and invited Sylhet to bat first in Dhaka. Rubel Hossain (2/27) sent Rony Talukdar (5) to the pavilion in the second over as the Challengers gained the momentum early in the innings. However, the duo of Johnson Charles (35) and Mohammad Mithun (84*) stabilized the innings.

Captain Mosaddek Hossain let the fans down with a slow innings in the end as he consumed 35 deliveries to score 29 runs. Eventually, the Challengers posted 162 runs on the board at the loss of four wickets.

Chasing a modest target of 163 runs, Chattogram lost the wickets of Junaid Siddique (4) and Nasir Hossain (0) early. Avishka Fernando (33) took the score near 50 but Krishmar Santokie (1/34) sent him back to the pavilion on the final ball of the powerplay overs.

Ryan Burl (3) struggled in the middle as it seemed like Thunder would win the match. However, a match-winning partnership between Kayes and Walton drove the Challengers home with six balls to spare. The duo smashed 5 fours and 7 sixes collectively in the middle as the opposition bowlers were helpless against them.

Imrul Kayes won the Man of the Match award for his brilliant knock. Chattogram Challengers will be in action tomorrow when they lock horns with the Khulna Tigers. Sylhet Thunder, on the other hand, will look to open their account on the points table in their next match against Rajshahi Royals.