The father-son duo put on a partnership of 53 runs off only 30 balls. Meanwhile, Eishakhil had an outing with the bat to remember, smacking 92 runs off 60 balls, laced with seven fours and five sixes. Nabi registered 17 off 13 deliveries, packed with two fours.
Their partnership came to an end when Abdullah Al Mamun removed Nabi in the 18th over. Meanwhile, Mohammad Saifuddin got Eisakhil’s wicket in the 19th over. The pair’s partnership came at the right time, especially after opener Soumya Sarkar’s dismissal.
Eisakhil and Soumya handed Noakhali a strong star, taking on opposition bowlers. But just when the pair took their side past 100 runs, Dhaka Capitals got their breakthrough as Al Mamun struck, removing Soumya for 48 off 25 balls. He also hit seven fours and a six.
After Soumya’s dismissal, Noakhali failed to find any momentum as Shahadat Hossain (3) and Habibur Rahman Sohan (4) were dismissed early in quick succession. It was only when Nabi arrived that Noakhali began to stage a comeback. The Afghan veteran cricketer began to form a partnership with is son, taking up the support role. Their partnership was pivotal, as Noakhali posted 184/7 in 20 overs.
Despite his son’s newfound success, Nabi will be hoping to one day play with him for the senior team. Speaking to the Daily Sun recently, he said, “It’s my dream. Hopefully we can do it. He (Eisakhil) is doing very well. He is a hard worker and I’m also pushing him to do work. I want him to make his own goals, if you want to get to be a high-level cricketer, you have to work hard. It’s not enough to make 50 or 60, you have to score 100-plus. He’s listening and pushing all the time. When he can talk to me, I try to give him advice to give him confidence for the game.”
Eisakhil has already started garnering attention in international cricket, too, when he got a 32-ball fifty during a game for Afghanistan U19 against India U19.