The Northern Warriors got sweet revenge over the Delhi Bulls on the biggest night of the tournament, beating them convincingly to become the Abu Dhabi T10 champions for the second time.
Credit has to go to the magnificent bowling attack of the Warriors that made little work of the star-studded Bulls batting line-up. The Warriors’ Sri Lankan duo of Maheesh Theekshana and Dhananjaya Lakshan was effective as well as economical, sharing five wickets at an enviable economy of just seven.
The final day of 2020 ADT10 was a blockbuster, with the third-place playoffs between Team Abu Dhabi and Qalandars providing the perfect appetizer before the main course of the grand finale.
Warriors tame Bulls to clinch 2020 ADT10 title | Full scoreboard
The Northern Warriors broke Delhi Bulls’ four-match unbeaten run in the biggest game of the season and won The Abu Dhabi T10 title for the second time.
Electing to bowl first, the Nicholas Pooran-led Warriors took control of the proceedings quickly with Junaid Siddique, who took a four-fer the previous night, sending back opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz and then Evin Lewis fell victim to Maheesh Theekshana’s crafty carrom-ball.
The Delhi Bulls lost two more wickets in the space of five deliveries and visibly struggled to connect the bat to the ball.
Mohammad Nabi, the highest scorer of the night for the Bulls, tried to anchor the innings but the constant pressure to score made him vulnerable.
The Northern Warriors gave no leeway to the Bulls, bringing in Maheesh Theekshana into the attack again, which bore fruit immediately. The Sri Lankan spinner scalped the prized wickets of Ravi Bopara and Dwayne Bravo as the Bulls could only muster up a lowly 81/9 in 10 overs.
In the chase, apart from Nicholas Pooran’s early dismissal, there was nothing much to celebrate in the entire innings for the Bulls.
The Northern Warriors kept cruising to the target without taking any risks, knowing all too well that the target was within reach.
The Bulls paid a price for dropping Waseem Muhammad at one as he went on to score 27 off 22, taking the Warriors 19 runs away from victory.
West Indian right-hander Rovman Powell sealed the match with a six as the Northern Warriors clinched the Abu Dhabi T10 title by eight wickets and 10 balls to spare.
Brief scores: Delhi Bulls 81/9 (Mohammad Nabi 21, Maheesh Theekshana 3/14) lost to Northern Warriors 85/2 in 8.2 overs (Waseem Muhammad 27, Shiraz Ahmed 1/18) by 8 wickets.
Team Abu Dhabi seals third place | Full scoreboard
Team Abu Dhabi’s superb bowling effort carried them over the Qalandars and helped them seal third place in The Abu Dhabi T10.
Being asked to bat first, Team Abu Dhabi had a flying start with 32 runs in two overs but lost two quick wickets as the Qalandars came back to reduce Team Abu Dhabi to 50/2 in four overs.
Team Abu Dhabi were looking set for a modest total had it not been Najibullah Zadran’s swift scoring towards the end. The Afghan batsman struck 22 in the eighth over.
Zadran scored 45* (16) as Team Abu Dhabi set up a commanding 124/6 for the Qalandars.
In the chase, Daniel Bell-Drummond, playing his first match this season, shared a 52-run partnership with captain Sohail Akhtar to put the Qalandars in a dominant position.
However, Drummond got out for 46 runs at a strike rate of 242.11. Sohail Akhtar followed him back quickly as the scoreboard read 76/3.
A tight bowling display by Team Abu Dhabi got them three wickets in 10 balls which sent the Qalandars’ required run-rate to over 41 at the end of nine overs.
Team Abu Dhabi landed an easy 21-run victory courtesy of their tidy bowling, making them the third-best team of 2020 ADT10.
Brief scores: Team Abu Dhabi 124/6 (Najibullah Zadran 45*, Mohammad Zahid 2/10) beat Qalandars 103/5 (Daniel Bell-Drummond 46, Rohan Mustafa 2/19) by 21 runs.