Ben Dunk takes Qalandars home in action-packed Abu Dhabi T10 League encounter against Maratha Arabians
Second-placed Qalandars beat bottom-placed Maratha Arabians by four wickets to claim their fourth consecutive victory in the 2021 Abu Dhabi T10 League.
It was Ben Dunk's unbeaten 26 off 12 balls which saw the Qalandars home in a game that had many twists and turns. Chasing 102 for victory, the Qalandars suffered an early jolt when Sharjeel Khan dismissed Tom Banton in the very first over.
The wicket, however, did not hinder the Qalandars' scoring rate as skipper Sohail Akhtar, who walked in at No.3, and Sharjeel Khan kept things moving at a steady pace.
The duo shared a 50-run stand before Sompal Kami got rid of Akhtar in the last ball of the fourth over, with Sharjeel also getting out shortly afterwards.
A flurry of wickets followed as Asif Ali, Shahid Afridi, and Ahmed Daniyal were all dismissed in quick succession. But Ben Dunk stayed calm at the other end and helped his team to a crucial victory.
Maratha Arabians suffer third successive defeat
The Maratha Arabians' woes in the Abu Dhabi T10 League continued as they suffered their third successive defeat. They elected to bat first after winning the toss, but their innings never picked up any momentum as wickets kept falling at regular intervals.
Mohammad Hafeez stayed strong at one end and scored a 26-ball 44. He was aided by fellow Pakistani veteran Shoaib Malik, who scored a 23 off 16 deliveries. However, the Arabians lacked firepower towards the end and finished with a sub-par score of 101-5.
The Arabians, who were lacklustre with the ball as well, suffered an early blow after Kevin Koththigoda had to be carried off the field, having just bowled the first over of the innings. Most of the Arabians' bowlers proved to be expensive and none managed to put any pressure on the batting team.
The Qalandars did lose a flurry of wickets towards the end of the game, but the Arabians, having failed in both departments, failed to capitalize.
The wickets did not bother Ben Dunk as he maintained his composure and continued to keep the scoreboard ticking. It took just a couple of bad deliveries for Dunk to cash in and win the game for the Qalandars.
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