Desert Vipers made it 2 wins in as many games after upstaging Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in a thriller in Sharjah. In a battle of two unbeaten teams, Desert Vipers held their nerves and played the key moments a tad better against a spirited Knight Riders team who fought till the end but came out second best. They put Abu Dhabi Knight Riders into bat first and the Knights rode on a half century from Alex Hales and handy contributions from others to put 171/6 in 20 overs with Noor and Qais picking 2 wickets apiece.
In the chase of 172, Desert Vipers rode on an explosive 48 off 25 balls from Shimron Hetmyer and handy contributions from other players including Daniel Lawrence and the finish from Khuzaima Bin Tanvir who scored 31* off 12 balls as the Vipers got over the line by 2 wickets and 3 balls to spare. Ajay Kumar picked up 3/21 for Knight Riders while Sunil Narine picked up 2 wickets but it was not to be for them in the end.
Alex Hales’ half-century helps Abu Dhabi Knight Riders post 171/6.Â
Put into bat first, Phil Salt and Alex Hales came out to open the batting for Knight Riders while Naseem Shah had ball in hand for Desert Vipers. The duo complimented each other well and got off to a steady start with Hales being the aggressor and Salt playing second fiddle. The opening partnership was worth 39 inside 5 overs before Salt fell for 18 off 15 balls with one four and one six to his name as Qais Ahmad got the breakthrough for the Vipers.
Alishan Sharafu came out to bat next and got off the blocks quickly as the powerplay score was 45/1 in 6 overs and off to a steady start. Alex Hales and Sharafu combined together for a good partnership and played the bowling to the merit as run scoring became easy. Both of them complimented each other well with both taking the aggressive route from time to time. Hales was more aggressive of the two. They put on 63 for the second wicket. Sharafu got a start but fell for 25 off 19 balls with 1 four and 2 sixes to his name as Noor Ahmad got his man. Liam Livingstone came out to bat next.
Alex Hales soon completed his half century. But upon completion of his half-century he fell for 53 off 37 balls with 4 fours and 3 sixes to his name as he was the third wicket to fall in the innings as Noor Ahmad got his man. Sherfane Rutherford came out to bat next. The duo added 8 runs between them before Rutherford fell for 3 off 6 balls to Daniel Lawrence. Liam Livingstone too fell for 4 off 6 balls to leave Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at 122/5 in 14.4 overs.
Andre Russell and Unmukt Chand joined forces at the middle in the death overs and had to put on a show. It was the Dre Russ show and he had the able company of Unmukt Chand with him and they took the attack to the opposition in the death overs. Chand complimented him well but played second fiddle to what Russell had instore for all of us. The duo put on 45 runs off 27 balls with Russell being the aggressor for sure. Chand fell in the last over of the innings for 18 off 13 balls with one four and one six to his name as Naseem Shah got his man.
Captain Sunil Narine came out to bat next and was unbeaten on 1 off 1 ball. Russell made an unbeaten 36 off 23 balls with 3 fours and 2 sixes to his name as Abu Dhabi Knight Riders made a competitive 171/6 in 20 overs. 13 extras given by the fielding side.
For Desert Vipers, Qais Ahmad was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 2/29 in 4 overs. Noor Ahmad chipped in with 2/35 in 4 overs. Daniel Lawrence bowled an over for 2 runs and picked up a wicket. Naseem Shah finished with 1/28 in 4 overs. Sam Curran gave 34 runs in 4 overs. Khuzaima Bin Tanvir gave 36 runs in 3 overs. It meant the target for Desert Vipers was 172 runs in 20 overs to make it 2 wins out of 2 games.
Shimron Hetmyer’s explosive 48 off 25 balls helped Desert Vipers get over the line by 2 wickets with 3 balls to spare.Â
Chasing 172 for the win, Fakhar Zaman and Andries Gous came out to open for Desert Vipers while Olly Stone had ball in hand for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders. The Vipers were off to a fast start from the get go and put pressure on the opposition. They put on 22 for the first wicket in no time before Gous was the first to go for 17 off 9 balls with 4 fours to his name as Sunil Narine got his man in his first over. Impact Player Max Holden came out to bat next. Holden and Zaman added 10 runs before Zaman fell for 12 off 9 balls with one six to his name as Ajay Kumar got his man.
Captain Sam Curran came to the crease next. The Impact Player Holden too fell for 1 off 6 balls as Narine got his second wicket. Daniel Lawrence joined Sam Curran in the middle. The duo had to rebuild the innings from 34/3 in 4.1 overs and they put their heads down now. Curran and Lawrence rebuild the innings initially with both playing at a similar role and strategy. They put on 32 for the 4th wicket before captain Curran fell for 19 off 15 balls with 2 fours to his name to leave the Vipers at 66/4 in 9.2 overs.
Shimron Hetmyer joined Lawrence in the middle. Lawrence and Hetmyer complimented each other well. Lawrence dropped anchor while Hetmyer was on the move from the get go and playing the aggressor’s role. Hetmyer took apart the bowling while Lawrence was happy to keep the scoreboard ticking. The duo rescued the innings and put in a big partnership that changed the game totally. The duo scored at a fair clip and put on 68 in 38 balls. Hetmyer scored 47 off them in the partnership only. The partnership was finally broken with Lawrence being dismissed for 35 off 32 balls with 2 fours to his name as Ajay Kumar got his man.
Hasan Nawaz came out to bat next and got out for a silver duck as Ajay had two wickets in the over. Khuzaima Bin Tanvir came out to bat next. Soon the set batter Hetmyer too got out for 48 off 25 balls with 3 fours and 3 sixes to his name as Andre Russell got his man. Qais Ahmad came out to bat next. The duo of Qais and Tanvir added 7 more runs before Qais fell for 3 off 4 balls to Olly Stone to leave the Vipers in trouble at 145/8 in 17.3 overs.
Naseem Shah came out to bat next with Vipers fair way away from the target. But then from out of nowhere Tanvir put on a show for the ages as he tore apart the bowling in death overs. They put on a match winning 30 off 12 balls out which Tanvir scored 24 off them in 9 balls while Naseem Shah was unbeaten on 6 off 3 balls with a boundary for his name and that boundary was the winning runs. But Tanvir stole the show with his hitting skills and remained unbeaten on 31 off 12 balls with 2 fours and 2 sixes to his name as the Vipers got over the line with 2 wickets and 3 balls to spare. Just 3 extras given by the Knight Riders.
Ajay Kumar was the pick of the bowlers for the Knight Riders as he finished with 3/21 in 4 overs. Sunil Narine finished with 2/35 in 4 overs. Olly Stone finished with 1/48 in 3.3 overs. Piyush Chawla the Impact Player finished with 1/22 in 3 overs while Andre Russell chipped in with 1/33 in 3 overs. Liam Livingstone bowled 2 overs for 15 runs. So, the Desert Vipers won by 2 wickets with Shimron Hetmyer awarded the Player of the Match Award.
What Lies Ahead.Â
Next Up in ILT20 2025 will be a clash between Dubai Capitals the defending champions against the Gulf Giants live from Dubai at 8 PM IST on 6th December. The Capitals lost their first game while the Giants won their first game. Which team will come out on top at the end of the night? Only time will tell.
Also Read:Â ILT20 2025: Gulf Giants Begin Campaign With Emphatic Win