Dubai: Another fiery half-century from Pathum Nissanka scripted the Gulf Giants four-wicket victory over the Dubai Capitals at the DP World ILT20 Season 4. Nissanka (67 off 31) joined James Vince (50* off 45) in a match-winning partnership of 97 runs in 60 balls to chase down the target of 161 for a second consecutive win. Nissanka thumped six four and five sixes as the Gulf Giants moved to the top of the points table.
Earlier, Azmatullah Omarzai led the charge with the ball, returning figures of 3/46 to restrict the Capitals to a competitive total. While several Capitals batters got starts, it was skipper Dasun Shanaka (23* off 9) lifted the tempo at the death with a late flurry.
Despite losing Rahmanullah Gurbaz (9 off 6) early, the Giants’ reply gathered momentum quickly. Nissanka took aim at James Neesham in the fourth over, hammering three sixes and a boundary as the Giants motored to 60/1 at the end of the powerplay.
While Vince played the quieter knock, Nissanka raced to a 23-ball half-century with five fours and four sixes.
The momentum halted briefly when the Giants lost two wickets in consecutive overs. Mustafizur Rahman picked up his second wicket of the night, to account for Nissanka in the 12th over. Shanaka scalped Moeen Ali soon after leaving the Giants at 112/3.
Omarzai (14 off 12) and Tom Moores (13 off 8) made handy contributions as Vince completed a 45-ball half-century and took the Giants home in 18.5 overs.
In the first innings, Azmatullah Omarzai struck early to remove Shayan Jahangir (12 off 11) in the second over but Opener Sediqullah Atal (35 off 25) and David Willey (29 off 28) put on a crucial stand of 61 runs for the second wicket. Sediqullah’s innings saw two fours and two sixes until he was removed by Moeen Ali in the 10th over to leave the Capitals at 75/2.
Willey and Gulbadin Naib (10 off 15) went in quick succession, with Liam Dawson dismissing Willey and Aayan Afzal Khan scalping Naib in the 14th over. The Capitals innings had faltered between the 10th and 14th over, only managing 18 runs during the phase.
Jordan Cox (31 off 17) and James Neesham (16* off 13) energised the innings with a rapid partnership of 41 runs in 22 balls.
Cox was looking dangerous with two fours and two sixes under his belt, but Omarzai returned to pick up the wickets of Cox and Rovman Powell (0 off 2) in the 18th over. Omarzai finished as the leading wicket taker with figures of 3/46, also leading the race for the White Belt (Best bowler/most wickets). Skipper Dasun Shanaka (23* off 9) finished the innings with two consecutive sixes in a 19-run over.
Gulf Giants captain, Moeen Ali said:
“The fact that we got the points, and we feel we can play better is a good thing. We squeezed them with the ball in the middle overs. Nissanka is a brilliant player and one of the top players in every format. Vince is also a quality player. He just did the job and played the situation well.”
Reflecting on the loss, captain of the Dubai Capitals, Dasun Shanaka said:
“Nissanka’s in the form of his life. He’s amazing because he is so small, and yet he hits the ball so far. He’s going to give trouble to a lot of teams in this tournament. We could have shown a little more intent with the bat in that middle period. We didn’t try to find the gaps; rather than waiting to hit the long ball, we needed to rotate the strike. Rovman Powell and I probably could have gone a bit earlier, and we might get this right in the next game.”
Brief Scores
Gulf Giants beat Dubai Capitals by four wickets
Dubai Capitals 160/6 in 20 overs (Sediqullah Atal 35, Jordan Cox 31, David Willey 29, Dasun Shanaka 23 not out, Azmatullah Omarzai 3 for 46, Aayan Afzal Khan 1 for 3, Moeen Ali 1 for 23)
Gulf Giants 161/6 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 67, James Vince 50 not out, Azmatullah Omarzai 14, Dasun Shanaka 2 for 16, Mustafizur Rahman 2 for 26)
