Dhaka Gladiators win first Bangladesh Premier League

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By Anbarasan Ethirajan BBC News, Dhaka

Dhaka Gladiators have won the inaugural Bangladesh Premier League T20 series, beating Barisal Burners by eight wickets in Dhaka.

Put into bat, Barisal Burners scored 140 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs, but captain Brad Hodge's heroics were not enough to save them.

Gladiators' Pakistani duo Shahid Afridi and Saeed Ajmal bowled intelligently to restrict their opponents.

Organizers slashed ticket prices so more spectators would watch the match.

Tournament organisers were relieved that most of the stands were full for the final. There had been a lukewarm response to the earlier stages, triggering fears the event could become a flop.

"I think the tournament has been really good for Bangladesh. The games were exciting. You look around and see how many people are here without tickets. It has really caught on," Qazi Nafizul, a cricket fan waiting outside the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium in Mirpur, said.

Bangladesh Cricket Board officials said television ratings were good and the matches had gone down well with expatriate South Asians in Europe and North America.

But the tournament was not without controversy and confusion. On the opening day, former Bangladeshi captain Mashrafe Mortaza said he had been approached by an unnamed player regarding "potential spot-fixing".

On Sunday police arrested a Pakistani national on suspicion of spot-fixing. The Anti Corruption Unit of the International Cricket Council also launched its own investigation.

There was confusion, too, regarding the fourth semi-finalist. Two teams finished on equal points in the first round.

A senior Bangladeshi player also complained that the tournament had not been organised properly and many players, including international stars, had not been paid 75% of the contracted amount by the time the tournament ended.

"We are not aware of this but we will look into the issue. We will make sure that all the franchises pay their cricketers on time. The players will get their full amount within a month after the end of the tournament," Gazi Ashraf Lipu, chairman of the BPL governing body told the BBC.