A late blitz from Shamim Hossain (59 not out in 24 balls, five fours, five sixes) helped Rangpur Riders recover from 18-4 to post 149-7 after Fortune Barishal captain Tamim Iqbal opted to field at the Shere Bangla National Stadium.

For Barishal, James Fuller claimed 3-25 and Mohammad Saifuddin 2-27. Opening the bowling, Kyle Mayers finished with 1-22 from his four overs.

Rangpur hit back to reduce Barishal to 69-3 after 10 overs, when Mayers joined Mushfiqur Rahim. Having held Shakib Al Hasan back until this point, Nurul Hasan finally brought him on, and promptly took him off after Mushfiqur hit two boundaries.

Mayers hit Mohammad Nabi for six at the other end. When Nurul replaced Nabi with Mahedi Hasan, Mayers hit a six and two fours and kept the strike.

Fazalhaq Farooqi bowled the next over. Mayers failed to get a run off the first ball. Bowling from over the wicket, the left-armer Farooqi pitched short, outside the off stump. Mayers stayed back in his crease and timed the well enough to clear the cover boundary.

When he had played the stroke in a T20I against Australia at the Carrara Oval in 2022, Adam Gilchrist was left in awe.

I’m sure there has been a better shot in the history of the game, but I just can’t remember it! 😳👌😂 https://t.co/4KAN8ue9xn

— Adam Gilchrist (@gilly381) October 5, 2022

At the 2023 IPL, perhaps to demonstrate that it was not a one-off, Mayers unleashed the stroke again, this time off Sam Curran. Now, at the 2024 BPL, he completed the “trilogy”.

Farooqi had the last laugh when he had Mayers (28 in 15 balls, one four, three sixes) caught off the next ball, but by then the target had come down to 31 in 33 balls. Mushfiqur (47 not out in 38 balls, six fours, one six) and David Miller (22 not out in 18 balls, two fours, one six) saw Barishal through with nine balls to spare.

Barishal will now play Comilla Victorians in the final on March 1 at the same venue.

Watch Kyle Mayers recreate the “greatest ever shot” in BPL 2024:

Kyle Mayers hits THAT six again 😲 Time we call it the Mayers Cut? 😉
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.#BPL2024 #BPLonFanCode @kyle_mayers pic.twitter.com/tUcMqA1e3V

— FanCode (@FanCode) February 29, 2024