Rony Talukdar smacked a robust fifty as Rangpur Riders earned a 34-win against the defending champion Comilla Victorians in their opening game of the Bangladesh Premier League at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Friday.

Rony hit a 31-67 to manage 176-5 in the stipulated overs.

In reply, Comilla were bowled out for 142 with five balls to spare, with their captain Imrul Kayes scoring 35 off 23 balls.

Hasan Masud was the pick among the Rangpur bowlers, scalping 3-20, while Rabiul Haque and Sikandar Raza took two wickets each.

Sent to bat, Rangpur made a sublime start with their opening pair, Rony and Mohammad Naim sharing 84 runs. However, the duo couldn’t carry on the momentum as the former was removed by Khushdil Shah.

Later, banking on Shoaib Malik and Naim’s 26-ball 33 and 34 off 29 runs, Rangpur posted a healthy 176-5.

Mustafizur Rahman, Fazalhaaq Farooki, Khushdil Shah, and Mosaddek claimed one wicket each.

In response, Comilla got off to a shaky start, losing opener Shyakat Ali on a sluggish 21-ball 16 that brought the score to 25-1.

Although Shyakat-David Malan and Imrul-Mosaddek shared a 15-ball 26 and a 43-ball 58 to overcome their initial damage, their middle and lower middle order batsmen were unable to play any crucial innings to reach the shores of victory.