David Wiese’s five-wicket haul followed by a clinical batting performance helped Gulf Giants beat Sharjah Warriors by seven wickets in their final league match of the inaugural International League T20 (ILT20) at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Monday, February 6.
The Giants rode on Wiese’s magnificent bowling figures of 4-0-20-5 to bowl out Warriors for 107 in 18.3 overs. In reply, Colin de Grandhomme’s 28-ball 35 and Vince’s 27 off 31 balls guided the Warriors to another dominant victory.
Earlier, Gulf Giants captain James Vince won the toss and elected to field first. The Giants handed debuts to Colin de Grandhomme, Tom Helm and Qais Ahmad. On the other hand, wicketkeeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz returned to the Warriors’ playing XI after recovering from his illness.
For the Warriors, Tom Kohler-Cadmore and Rahmanullah Gurbaz opened the innings. The duo added 14 runs for the opening stand before Giants fast bowler Sanchit Sharma dismissed Gurbaz for 7 in the fourth over.
Meanwhile, Kohler-Cadmore looked in great touch as he smashed six fours and one six in the powerplay to get the Warriors off to a blitzkrieg start. He later perished to debutant Helm for a 19-ball 33.
The Giants continued to pile more pressure on the Warriors’ batting line-up as Carlos Brathwaite removed captain Moeen Ali for 1.
With the Warriors reeling at 44/3, Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis joined Evin Lewis at the crease. The pair added run-a-ball 13 before Lewis (3) was trapped in front of the stumps by Giants’ star all-rounder David Wiese.
In the 11th over, Wiese produced a sensational three-wicket over to remove Joe Denly (3), Stoinis (18) and Chris Woakes (0) to put the Warriors in all sorts of trouble.
Later, Mohammad Nabi and Noor Ahmad stitched a 28-run stand for the eighth wicket before an unfortunate run-out forced Ahmad back into the pavilion for 10.
Wiese bagged his fifth wicket of the match as he trapped Nabi in front of the stumps for 21. He finished his spell with impressive figures of 4-0-20-5.
Brathwaite picked up the final wicket as he dismissed Junaid Siddique (8) to bundle out Warriors for a below-par total.
Chasing 108, openers Tom Banton and James Vince got the Giants off to a good start. The duo forged a 32-run opening partnership before Banton departed for 11.
Following Banton’s dismissal, debutant Colin de Grandhomme joined captain Vince in the middle. The pair added 50 runs off 47 balls for the second wicket to put the Giants in a match-winning position.
However, the Giants later suffered twin blows as Siddique dismissed de Grandhomme (35) and Vince (27) in his third over.
In the end, Aayan Afzal Khan (14) and Gerhard Erasmus (10) remained unbeaten to chase down the total in 16.3 overs.
With seven wins and just a solitary defeat, the Giants finished at the top of the ILT20 2023 standings with 16 points from 10 matches.
Having advanced to the playoffs as the table-toppers, the Giants will look to continue their winning run when they lock horns with Desert Vipers in Qualifier 1 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, February 8.
