The 11th edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL 2025) is set to take place from December 30. Last edition’s winner, Fortune Barishal, and newcomer, Durbar Rajshahi will lock horns in the tournament opener in Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka. In a new development, Fortune Barishal has signed Pakistan’s star pacer Shaheen Afridi for the BPL 2025. It will be the first time that Shaheen Afridi will play in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).
Fortune Barishal will start BPL 2025 against Durbar Rajshahi in a tournament opener
Fortune Barishal and Durbar Rajshahi will start the BPL 2025 in an opening game at Dhaka on December 30. The 11th edition of the Bangladesh Premier League will see a total of 7 teams participating in the tournament. Those teams are:-
| Fortune Barishal | Durbar Rajshahi |
| Khulna Tigers | Dhaka Capitals |
| Chittagong Kings | Rangpur Riders |
| Sylhet Strikers |
A total of 46 matches will happen in the tournament, including thee 2 Qualifiers, Eliminator, and a final. Dhaka, Sylhet, and Chattogram are the three venues that will host the games in BPL 2025.
Fortune Barishal signed Shaheen Afridi for BPL 2025
Fortune Barishal has signed Shaheen Afridi for the coming BPL 2025 edition. A 24-year-old pacer is a direct signing for the franchise. The PCB (Pakistan Cricket Board) has allowed an NOC (No Objection Certificate) to Shaheen Afridi till January 15, 2025. That means he will play the first 5 games in the tournament.
The franchise announced Shaheen’s signing by issuing a statement. They said – “Pakistani left-arm fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi will play for Fortune Barishal in the upcoming BPL.”
First-ever BPL stint for Shaheen Afridi
This will be the first-ever BPL stint for Shaheen Afridi. As far as franchise cricket, he has played in a few other leagues as well. Right now, he is playing an ODI series in South Africa (SA).
A good move by Barishal
This is a good move by Fortune Barishal to bring Shaheen Afridi to their side. He is tall, can generate good bounce, has pace, and can swing the new ball. The left-arm pacer is lethal with the new ball and makes the opposition batters’ life difficult. He can also nail yorkers at the back end of the inning, has the variations to restrict runs, and has a sharp bouncer.
We have seen him bowling match-winning spells for Pakistan over the years. Not just with the ball, he has improved a lot as a batter and can hit the long ball. Barishal would want him to be at his best in his short BPL stint.
Other direct signings for Fortune Barishal
Other than Shaheen Afridi, the franchise has directly signed Kyle Mayers, Dawid Malan, Mohammad Nabi, Faheem Ashraf, Ali Mohammad, and Jahandad Khan. From the players’ draft, they have signed James Fuller, Pathum Nissanka, and Nandre Burger.
Some local players like Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim, Taijul Islam, Mahmudullah Riyad, etc are also a part of the team. Let us now see a full squad of Fortune Barishal for BPL 2025. An experienced campaigner Tamim Iqbal will lead the side
Fortune Barishal BPL 2025 squad:-
Tamim Iqbal (c), Mushfiqur Rahim, Taijul Islam, Mahmudullah Riyad, Kyle Mayers, Dawid Malan, Mohammad Nabi, Faheem Ashraf, Ali Mohammad and Jahandad Khan, James Fuller, Pathum Nissanka and Nandre Burger, Nazmul Hossain Shanto, Towhid Hridoy, Ripon Mondol, Tanvir Islam, Rishad Hossain, Ebadot Hossain, Nayeem Hasan, Shohidul Islam, Ariful Islam, Pritom Kumar, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Imran.
Barishal won the last edition by beating Comilla Victorians
Barishal won the BPL 2024 by beating Comilla Victorians in the final. In the league stage, they finished at No. 3 in the points table with 7 wins in 12 games. In an Eliminator, they defeated Comilla Victorians by 7 wickets.
They locked horns against Rangpur Riders in the Qualifier 2 and came out victorious. In the final, they again come up against Comilla Victorians. After winning the toss, Barishal asked Victorians to bat first. The bowlers started well and took 3 wickets inside the first powerplay. Mahidul Islam Ankon batted well for his 38 runs and and quick-fire cameo from Andre Russell helped Victorians to reach 154 in the first inning.
Barishal openers, Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Tamim Iqbal gave them a good start in a run chase. The pair added 76 runs in just 8 overs to build the base for the run chase. After that, Kyle Mayers played an important inning of 46 runs off 30 balls to get the team over the line. He became Man of the Match in the final. Tamim Iqbal became the player of the Tournament in BPL 2024.
Conclusion
So this is the latest news from the Fortune Barishal camp. Shaheen Afridi will play for Barishal in BPL 2025. He will not feature in the two-match test series against SA starting from December 26. The PCB has decided to rest him, considering his workload management. Let’s see how he does in BPL 2025.
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FAQs:-
(1) How many BPL titles Fortune Barishal has won?
Barishal has only won the BPL title once, the last year (2024). The franchise has reached the final three more times; in 2012, 2015, and 2022, but couldn’t cross the line.
(2) Which team is the most successful in BPL history?
Comilla Victorians has won the most BPL titles in the tournament’s history, four in 2015, 2019, 2022, and 2023.
