Gulf Giants advanced to the final of the inaugural International League T20 (ILT20) by defeating MI Emirates by four wickets in the Qualifier 2 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Friday, February 10.
Captain James Vince led from the front by playing a match-winning knock of unbeaten 83 runs off just 56 balls to help the Giants chase down a target of 168 in 18.1 overs. Earlier, Chris Jordan and David Wiese claimed two wickets each for the Giants to restrict the Emirates to 167/5 in their 20 overs.
Gulf Giants won the toss and opted to field first. The Giants made two changes to their playing XI, bringing in Gerhard Erasmus and Qais Ahmad in place of Tom Banton and Dominic Drakes. On the other hand, the Kieron Pollard-led MI Emirates remained unchanged from their last game.
The Giants got off to a brilliant start as star all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite removed Andre Fletcher for 4.
Wicketkeeper-batter Lorcan Tucker joined Muhammad Waseem at the crease. The duo added 25 runs off 20 balls for the Emirates before Tucker was dismissed by Chris Jordan for a 17-ball 21.
Meanwhile, Waseem and Dan Mousely stitched a 33-run stand for the third wicket before the young England batter perished to David Wiese for 7.
Giants’ star fast bowler Jordan continued to pile more pressure on the Emirates’ batting line-up as he cleaned up Waseem for 31 off 26 balls.
Reeling at 67/4, Pollard joined Nicholas Pooran in the middle. The two Caribbean batters played some counter-attacking cricket, forging a 71-run stand off just 44 balls to bring the Emirates back into the game.
Later, Wiese provided the Giants a much-needed breakthrough as he dismissed Pooran for a 25-ball 29.
At the other end, Pollard played a sensational knock to bring up his fifty off just 32 balls. The Emirates skipper remained unbeaten on 57 to help his side post a competitive total of 167/5 in their allotted 20 overs.
Chasing a target of 168, openers Chris Lynn and Vince got the Giants off to a scintillating start. The swashbuckling pair established a 64-run opening partnership before Dwayne Bravo removed Lynn for 24.
Following Lynn’s dismissal, Colin de Grandhomme walked into bat. While Vince and de Grandhomme added 17 more runs, Emirates’ star leg-spinner Rashid Khan later cleaned up the Kiwi batter for 10.
With the score reading 81/2, Erasmus joined Vince in the middle.
Meanwhile, the Giants skipper continued to play an eye-catching knock, notching up his fourth fifty in the ongoing T20 tournament.
Vince and Erasmus stitched a 27-run stand to put the Giants in a commanding position.
However, Emirates left-arm pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi bagged two wickets in two balls, removing Erasmus (12) and Shimron Hetmyer (0) to bring them back into the contest.
The Giants later rode on Vince and Wiese to resurrect their innings. The duo added 36 runs off just 20 balls before Rashid dismissed Wiese for 15.
In the end, Vince and Carlos Brathwaite (13) helped the Giants to chase down the target with 11 balls to spare.
With a clinical victory over the Emirates, the Giants have set-up a mouth-watering final against Desert Vipers to be played at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday, February 12.
