At the Zayed Cricket Stadium, Dubai Capitals defeated Abu Dhabi Knight Riders by 85 runs with a magnificent all-around team effort in the DP World ILT20 season 2 Eliminator.
Pitch report and toss update
Scoring a lot of runs has not always been easy at the Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium. The pitch can be effectively exploited by pacers and spinners alike. It speaks volumes that no more than 167 have ever been chased down at this location in T20Is. The Abu Dhabi Knight Riders chose to field first after winning the toss.
The Dubai Capitals get going after losing a couple of early wickets
Tom Banton, the opener, scored a boundary off David Willey’s first ball of the game. But he could only add 15 runs with opener Max Holden when Holden misplayed his lofted shot and Laurie Evans caught him at mid-off for only one.
Sabir Ali, a medium-pacer from the UAE, bowled Du Plooy cleanly with a delivery that went through the bat and pad gap and struck the off stump, despite the batsman scoring run-a-ball nine runs. After that, Tom Abell joined Banton, and the two of them shared 63 runs for the third wicket, keeping the scoreboard ticking.
Then, trying a reverse shot, Banton was cleanly bowled by Fabian Allen for 44 runs. Dubai Capitals were 93/3 at the end of 11 overs. This brings skipper Sam Billings to join Tom Abell at the crease.
Raza and Billings’ partnership led Dubai Capitals to a competitive score
Sabir Ali struck again at 117, this time with a cutter ball that beat Abell and smacked his off stump for 41. One of their top players, Sikandar Raza, together with Billings, moved the score above 150 in 17.2 overs. In the last over, Billings then smashed Sabir Ali for a six and two straight boundaries off the first three deliveries.
Josh Little, caught by Evans at long-on, ended Raza’s crucial 40 off 19 balls in the final over. Despite the fact that this broke his 69-run fifth wicket partnership with Billings, the Dubai Capitals amassed an excellent 188 runs due to 54 crucial runs scored in the final four overs.
For the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, Ali claimed a pair of wickets, while Joshua Little, David Willey, and Fabian Allen each contributed one wicket.
Knight Riders started sluggish after losing too many wickets inside the powerplay
Jason Roy was dismissed for a duck by Kuggeleijn’s second delivery in the opening over, which put the Knight Riders’ chase off to a poor start. In the second over, opener Michael Pepper was also out for five after being beautifully collected by diving Abell at cover by Olly Stone.
Kuggeleijn’s forcing of Joe Clarke to play into the hands of Leus Du Plooy for 13 and the dependable Alishan Sharafu out to a magnificent diving catch by Dasun Shanaka at short cover point for a duck further strengthened the Capitals’ position.
Laurie Evans attempted a sweep but was bowled for seven by Zahir Khan, forcing half of the Knight Riders back into the dugout. With the score displaying 46 for 5, Sam Hain managed to keep up the score and helped the Knight Riders score to reach 60/5 at the halfway mark.
Raza and Kuggeleijn’s brilliant spell knocked out the Knight Riders
Sam Hain and David Willey did their best to battle back, but it was impossible for them as the asking rate increased with every ball. Sam Hain was on 29 runs when Raza clean bowled him.
Raza then proceeded to clean bowled David Willey, ending his 36-run inning. Kuggeleijin hastened the victory by tempting captain Sunil Narine to be caught by Banton mid-off for 1. Olly Stone also took one wicket, but Scott Kuggeleijn utterly crushed the Knight Riders, taking three early wickets that shattered the backbone of the opposition.
During the middle overs, Sikandar Raza and Zahir Khan split four wickets apiece, demonstrating the dominance of the spinners. Once again, it was Scott Kuggeleijn who claimed the penultimate wicket, and a run-out completed the victory for the Dubai Capitals.
The Dubai Capitals were on the verge of elimination at one point in the competition, but they are now only one win away from the finals. In Qualifier 2, the Dubai Capitals will face either the Gulf Giants or the MI Emirates.
But the Abu Dhabi Knight Riders have been inconsistent throughout the season, and losing Andre Russell for this game was a major setback since they needed a blow like the one that he played against Australia in the third T20I.
Also Read: GG vs ADKR: Gulf Giants Secure Thrilling Victory Over Abu Dhabi Knight Riders In ILT20 Clash