Abu Dhabi T10 League 2021: Day 9 – Round-Up

The penultimate day of the Abu Dhabi T10 League commenced with the Qualifier between the Northern Warriors and Delhi Bulls. After the latter elected to field, two wickets each to Waqas Masood, Dwayne Bravo, and Nyeem Young restricted them to 97/7. Struggling for momentum for almost their entire innings, it was only Nicholas Pooran, who left some impact as he got 32 from 12, featuring three fours and as many sixes.

During the chase, both the openers – Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Evin Lewis – got a start, however, Junaid Siddique, who returned with 4/20, struck on consecutive deliveries to remove them in the second over of their response. It was a 10-ball 29 from Sherfane Rutherford, however, which maintained the tempo of their chase, before the Bulls lost Mohammad Nabi and Dwayne Bravo cheaply. Tom Abell, who smashed 23 from 11, joined hands with Ravi Bopara (15 from 12) to take the Bulls to a 5-wicket victory and straight to the finals.

The next clash of the day – the first Eliminator – between Team Abu Dhabi and Qalandars turned out to be a fairly low scoring encounter as Qalandars could put up merely 83/7 after being put to bat. Having lost Tom Banton for a golden duck on the first ball, the Qalandars kept losing wickets, thanks to Obey McCoy and Naveen ul Haq, who got two wickets each, giving away merely 17 from their four overs combined. Shahid Afridi (24 from 16) and Samit Patel (16 from 14) dragged the team score towards 80, although it was never enough.

During the chase, Team Abu Dhabi lost a few early wickets, too, as Sultan Ahmed removed both Paul Stirling and Luke Wright for single-digit scores soon after the dismissal of Chris Gayle (15 from 8). However, a 19-ball 27 from Ben Duckett alongside Joe Clarke’s 13-ball 22 proved sufficient for Team Abu Dhabi to win by 6 wickets, and knock Qalandars out of contention of the titular clash.

Northern Warriors had another opportunity, facing Team Abu Dhabi in the second Eliminator of the day, and they managed to grab it with both hands. After the Warriors opted to field, Chris Gayle failed for the second time in the day, perishing to Junaid Siddique. Paul Stirling, however, ensured that he did not repeat the performance he put up a little earlier, as he slammed 6 sixes and flew to 48 from just 13.

A couple of decent cameos from Joe Clarke and Jamie Overton meant that Team Abu Dhabi reached 114/7 in the face of Fabien Allen’s brilliant spell of 4/13. After a couple of early strikes during their chase, a spectacular 76-run stand between Lendl Simmons, who smoked three fours and as many sixes in his 27-ball 46, and Rovman Powell, who got 49 from 24 with 5 fours and two sixes, led the Warriors to 7-wicket victory and granted them the ticket to the grand final of the league.

Abu Dhabi T10 League 2021, Brief scores, Day 9

Northern Warriors vs Delhi Bulls – Qualifier

NW:  97/7 (10 overs) – Nicholas Pooran (32 from 12), Lendl Simmons (19 from 15); Dwayne Bravo 2/14, Nyeem Young 2/22, Waqas Masood 2/24

DB: 102/5 (8.4 overs) – Sherfane Rutherford (29 from 10), Tom Abell (23 from 11); Junaid Siddique 4/20

Result: Delhi Bulls won by 5 wickets.

Qalandars vs Team Abu Dhabi – Eliminator 1

QAL: 83/7 (10 overs) – Shahid Afridi (24 from 16), Samit Patel (16 from 14); Naveen ul Haq 2/6, Obed McCoy 2/11, Tom Helm 2/22

TAD: 88/4 (8.4 overs) – Ben Duckett (27 from 19), Joe Clarke (22 from 13); Sultan Ahmed 2/21, Chris Jordan 1/12

Result: Abu Dhabi won by 6 wickets.

Team Abu Dhabi vs Northern Warriors – Eliminator 2

TAD: 114/7 (10 overs) – Paul Stirling (48 from 13), Joe Clarke (16 from 14); Fabien Allen 4/20 Dhananjaya Lakshan 1/7

NW: 115/3 (9.4 overs) – Rovaman Powell (49 from 24), Lendl Simmons (46 from 27); Naveen ul Haq 1/21, Obed McCoy 1/22

Result: Northern Warriors won by 7 wickets.