Northern Warriors’ swashbuckling all-rounder Fabian Allen produced a remarkable bowling spell in Eliminator 2 that reduced the high-flying Team Abu Dhabi to rubble. In a do-or-die situation, Allen took four prized wickets of the home team that put the brakes on their fast-climbing run-rate and restricted them to an attainable total.
On a day where everything was at stake, there was thrill and drama in every match as teams left no stone unturned to reach the big finals. Let’s see who came out on top and who crashed out on the eventful day of the Abu Dhabi T10 playoffs.
Warriors outfoxed by Bulls’ incisive bowling | Full scoreboard
Northern Warriors, arguably the best batting side of 2020 ADT10, were no match to the ruthless bowling display by the Delhi Bulls, who restricted them to their lowest total this season and sailed to the finals with an easy win.
Bowling first, the Delhi Bulls were right on the mark from the very start as Waqas Maqsood got rid of both openers in 2.1 overs.
Northern Warriors’ captain Nicholas Pooran didn’t let the falling wickets on the other end affect his composure as he amassed a brisk 32 off 12 deliveries before heading back to the dugout.
Delhi Bulls tightened the noose around the Northern Warriors by dismissing half their team with only 62 runs on the board. Dwayne Bravo starred with 2 for 14, giving away just one boundary as the Warriors could only muster up 97/7 in 10 overs.
After the break, the Delhi Bulls scored 14 in the first over but UAE quick Junaid Siddique rattled the batting lineup with four wickets in his two overs.
However, Englishmen Ravi Bopara and Tom Abell stitched a crucial 30-run partnership in the end to guide the Bulls to the target with eight balls remaining and five wickets in hand.
Brief scores: Northern Warriors 97/7 (Nicholas Pooran 32, Dwayne Bravo 2/14) lost to Delhi Bulls 102/5 in 8.4 overs (Sherfane Rutherford 29, Junaid Siddique 4/20) by 5 wickets.
Team Abu Dhabi oust Qalandars, keep hopes alive | Full scoreboard
Following a skilled bowling performance, Team Abu Dhabi romped into the Eliminator 2 with a commanding six-wicket triumph over the struggling Qalandars.
Team Abu Dhabi had a great start to the match as Qalandars’ opener Tom Banton was out on the first ball. Next, Afghan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq’s sublime third over scalped big fish Sohail Akhtar for 17 and Ben Dunk for a golden duck.
The remaining Qalandars’ players also failed to fire, barring Pakistan veteran Shahid Afridi, who contributed with 24 off 16 hitting three fours and a six.
Qalandars were outmatched by the home team’s outstanding bowling and summed a below-par 83/7 at the end of 10 overs.
Later, Team Abu Dhabi stumbled in the chase losing their top three – Chris Gayle, Paul Stirling and Luke Wright in a span of six deliveries but Joe Clarke and Ben Duckett took their chances by sharing a 44-run partnership and bringing the equation down to run-a-ball.
Although Joe Clarke was out in the seventh over, Ben Duckett continued the assault to guide Team Abu Dhabi to a six-wicket victory.
Brief scores: Qalandars 83/7 (Shahid Afridi 24, Naveen-ul-Haq 2/6) lost to Team Abu Dhabi 88/4 in 8.4 overs (Ben Duckett 27*, Sultan Ahmed 2/21) by 6 wickets.
Simmons, Allen shine as Warriors sail into finals | Full scoreboard
Northern Warriors will meet the Delhi Bulls again, this time in the finals of the Abu Dhabi T10, courtesy of the last over heroics of Caribbean hero Lendl Simmons.
Chasing Team Abu Dhabi’s 114, the Warriors had a sluggish start and were struggling at 39/2 at the halfway mark when Lendl Simmons teamed up with Rovman Powell to slowly put runs on the board without losing any wickets.
The two West Indians found the gaps and added 76 runs, getting the required runs to 34 in the last two overs. Simmons and Powell scored 18 in the penultimate over, albeit the latter lost his wicket.
Needing 16 off 6, Lendl Simmons calmly darted two sixes over midwicket and scored the remaining with ease to move into the finals of 2020 ADT10.
Earlier, Abu Dhabi’s Paul Stirling struck a scintillating 48 from 13 deliveries, studded with six maximums and three fours.
For the Warriors, Fabian Allen was the star as he scalped four wickets in his two overs and ended the home team’s innings at 114/7, which was eventually chased down.
Brief scores: Team Abu Dhabi 114/7 (Paul Stirling 48, Fabian Allen 4/13) lost to Northern Warriors 115/3 in 9.4 overs (Rovman Powell 49, Naveen-ul-Haq 1/21) by 7 wickets.
