West Indian Chadwick Walton fired an unbeaten 51 as the Maratha Arabians kept their tryst with destiny by clinching the Aldar Properties Abu Dhabi T10 League on Sunday night.
At an unusually packed Zayed Cricket Stadium on a week night, the Arabians bested the Deccan Gladiators by a comprehensive eight wickets, with 16 deliveries to spare, in the final.
It was third time lucky for Dwayne Bravo’s side, who had lost in the semifinals in the inaugural iteration and in the Eliminator last season.
Earlier, the Maratha Arabians captain Dwayne Bravo’s decision to have a bowl after calling right, worked like a charm.
His side had the Deccan Gladiators on the mat and knocked them over for 87 for 8 in the 10 overs, the lowest total of this season, batting first.
The previous lowest in this edition was 92-1 by the Northern Warriors against Team Abu Dhabi.
The rut had begun soon enough after Bravo’s opposite number Shane Watson falling cheaply for just one, after the opener was caught by Najibullah Zadran off the bowling of Mitchell McClenaghan.
Watson’s partner Mohammad Shahzad hit some delightful boundaries but the burly opener didn’t last long enough, facing seven balls for his 14 before being caught by Kasun Rajitha off the frizzy-haired Lasith Malinga.
Dangerman Kieron Pollard was kept quiet and the towering and muscular West Indian limited-overs captain made a scratchy five from eight balls before being gobbled up by Dasun Shanaka off Rajitha.
Daniel Lawrence too was back in the dug-out moments later, after being caught by Rajitha off Bravo, for four.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Asif Khan stemmed the rot for the Gladiators but the Arabians tightened the screws with some tidy bowling that was backed up by some good fielding.
Bravo then accounted for his second victim of the match, having Rajapaksa leg before for a 12-ball 23 that had two sixes and a boundary.
Ben Cutting was then run out by Chadwick Walton after the Australian had made 12 from five balls, with two boundaries.
Walton followed that up with another run out, that of Migael Pretorius, who was out for nought.
He was not finished though with the West Indian combining with Shanaka to run out Fawad Ahmed, also for nought.
Asif Khan stood amidst the ruins with the 29-year-old, who has 32 first-class matches to his name, remaining unbeaten on 25 from 17 deliveries and which was peppered with three boundaries and a six.
And with the job half done, the Arabians went on to complete it in a jiffy. Openers Walton and Chris Lynn put the skates on and raced away to 56 in 3.5 overs before Lynn was dismissed.
The Queenslander coshed two sixes in his 10-ball 16 before he was caught by Pollard off UAE medium pacer Zahoor Khan.
They lost Adam Lyth quickly but Walton and Zadran took them home without any further hiccups. Walton’s knock came from 26 deliveries with six boundaries and three sixes as he made light work of the chase.
Source | khaleejtimes Nov 24, 2019
