Tim David and Nicholas Pooran’s late-inning heroics helped the MI Emirates overcome a mediocre start against the defending champions, the Gulf Giants, in the fourth game of the DP World ILT20 today at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi.
With a magnificent execution by the bowling unit and with the help of Fazalhaq Farooqi’s 4 wickets haul, the MI Emirates won their first game of the competition, defeating the Gulf Giants by 18 runs.
Pitch Report and Toss Update
Teams playing at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium favor chasing because the surface here initially gives pacers some purchase, and it will also get better for batting under the lights. So looking at the conditions, James Vince, the skipper of the Gulf Giants, won the toss and elected to field.
The Gulf Giants started off well, as they got some early breakthroughs
The Giants decision to bowl first after winning the toss was on point, as Dominic Drakes gave the Gulf Giants an early advantage by getting rid of Will Smeed in the second over for just one run.
Muhammad Waseem and Andre Fletcher stitched a partnership of 41 (31) to push the MI Emirates to 41 for 1 at the end of the powerplay, with Waseem hitting two successive sixes, despite a difficult start against the swing and bounce.
Waseem, on the other hand, was dismissed for 19 runs in the next over by Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and Mujeeb produced a chance of taking wicket of MI Emirates’ skipper Pooran in the same over, but that was dropped by Giants captain Vince. The Giants eventually had to pay for this dropped catch as the game progressed.
Nicholas Pooran’s blazing fifty and Tim David’s terrific hitting push MI Emirates to a great finish
In an arduous partnership with Andre Fletcher, Nicholas Pooran scored 22 runs in the middle overs. Following Fletcher’s departure for 28 runs, Ambati Rayudu and Pooran launched an aggressive attack on the Giants’ bowling, combining for 69 runs in just 32 deliveries.
Rayudu scored a quick 25 runs, while Pooran accomplished his half-century in 27 balls. But the attack was halted when Chris Jordan bowled the decisive 18th over of his spell and dismissed both Pooran and Rayudu, and MI Emirates were on 139/5 with the two overs remaining of the innings.
MI Emirates added 40 runs in the last two overs thanks to Tim David’s explosive power hitting. Tim David led the MI Emirates to an impressive total of 179 for five in 20 overs, with a blitzkrieg of two fours and five sixes in the last overs. He scored 41 runs in just 15 balls.
Bowlers did a pretty decent job for the Giants till the 18th over, but the momentum shifted towards MI Emirates as they gave away too many runs in the last couple of overs.
The Gulf Giants explosive start got lessened by Fazalhaq Farooqi later
The Gulf Giants, challenged with pursuing at nine runs per over, got off to a scorching start led by captain James Vince, who hit boundaries frequently. The Giants were cruising along with 48 runs at no loss at the end of five overs.
Jamie Smith and Jordan Cox were bowled out in back-to-back deliveries by Fazalhaq Farooqi during the last over of the powerplay. Usman Khan of the United Arab Emirates joined James Vince with a 48-for-two score.
Having scored 33 runs between Usman Khan and James Vince at the midway point of the innings, the Giants were now lagging below the needed run rate, needing 99 runs in ten overs. Waqar Salamkheil dismissed Usman Khan for 22 runs while he was trying to accelerate.
James Vince, meanwhile, reached his half-century in just 38 balls with seven fours and a six. In the 14th over, Dwayne Bravo sent the captain of the Gulf Giants back to the dressing room in order to bring Shimron Hetmyer to the field.
Jamie Overton gave the MI Emirates jitters with his fiery knock
The Gulf Giants could only muster 12 runs between the 12th and 15th overs, leaving them with a challenging equation of 71 runs required in the next five overs. With three straight sixes in Waqar Salamkheil’s over and two more off Trent Boult in the next over, Jamie Overton reignited the run chase in the 17th over.
Jamie Overton almost replicated Tim David’s knock but fell short to get his team over the line. The reigning champions lacked the firepower to raise their score past 161 after Farooqi dismissed Overton.
Waqar Salamkheil, Trent Boult, and Dwayne Bravo all contributed significant wickets throughout the bowling innings, but Fazalhaq Farooqi was clearly the star of the show with his amazing 4 for 25 numbers.
With the Tim David’s furious innings and Fazalhaq Farooqi’s impressive four wickets haul helped MI Emirates to start their campaign with a win in the ILT20 2024.
Also Read: ILT20: Dubai Capitals Set to Face Off Against MI Emirates In A Thrilling ILT20 Showdown
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