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Mohammad IsamESPN
Previous season: Champions, with 10 wins in 14 matches.
Big picture
Only five overseas players can fit into an XI so who among Dhaka Dynamites’ superstars will have to sit out? Shahid Afridi? Evin Lewis? Sunil Narine? Kumar Sangakkara? Or Shane Watson? Problems of plenty, though, are easy to handle and a simple policy of rotation should do the trick. Besides, high-quality back-ups will come in handy since the Pakistan and West Indies players are likely to leave at the end of November to play a series against each other.
Their bowling attack will bank on local players like Mohammad Shahid and Abu Hider while Mohammad Amir, Ronsford Beaton and Graeme Cremer bring pedigree as well. The three allrounders – Shakib Al Hasan, Afridi and Kevon Cooper – can expect support from Narine, who has shown increased batting prowess of late.
With Lewis, Sangakkara, Watson and Rovman Powell, the top order looks solid. They will be shored up by Mosaddek Hossain, Nadif Chowdhury, Cameron Delport and Joe Denly.
Key player
Shane Watson will be playing his first BPL campaign and therefore will have to shoulder a lot of expectation. He hasn’t been in the best form this year, having scored only two fifties across four T20 tournaments. His strike-rate is up there in the 130s, which should come handy in batting-friendly conditions in Bangladesh.
Coach
Khaled Mahmud continues to juggle his many roles in Bangladesh cricket, coach is perhaps the one that brings him the greatest pleasure. He was in charge of the franchise in 2016, when it won its maiden title in 2016 and will have to make big decisions again with regards to the playing XIs. It will be tempting to keep playing his plethora of stars, but the local talent also need chances.
One that got away
Dhaka will certainly miss Dwayne Bravo who took 21 wickets in their 2016 campaign, particularly if they make it to the knockout stage again. Useful batsman, excellent fielder, and the life of any party, these benefits and more will now be enjoyed by Comilla Victorians.
Flying under the radar
Khaled Ahmed is a quick bowler from Sylhet, and was one of the uncapped players that Dhaka picked up in the draft last month. His first-class (average 35) and List A (only one match played) figures do not suggest it, but he is known to be quite promising.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo