ADKR 182/7 in 20 Overs [Alishan Sharafu 55(38), Jason Holder 22*(7); Alzarri Joseph 3/32 in 4 Overs] beat MIE 140/6 [Kieron Pollard 69*(49); Kyle Mayers 3/25 in 3 Overs, Jason holder 2/28 in 4 Overs] by 42 runs
The Abu Dhabi Knight Riders faced off against the MI Emirates in a clash anticipated by many around the world at the Sheik Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Just days out after the loss against MIE, the Knight Riders had the chance to make it right and they were raring to put on a stunning performance. The fans were ready to cheer their favourite knights and watch a sensational contest.
View this post on Instagram
After being put into bat first, ADKR were rocked early with Kyle Mayers and Michael Pepper fell off consecutive balls in the third over itself. MIE had the early advantage over ADKR and they looked to apply as much pressure as possible. However, Andries Gous alongside returning Charith Asalanka led ADKR to a fightback. Gous took the aggressive route while Asalanka played second fiddle beautifully. A quickfire partnership got ADKR back on track as both batters looked to maximise the innings. Just when things looked going ADKR’s way, both Gous and Asalanka lost their wickets in quick succession. Despite the two set batters back in the hut, the two new batters, Alishan Sharafu and Roston Chase didn’t back down to the challenge and took on the MIE bowlers with intent. A scintillating 72-run partnership put ADKR on route towards a big total. Young Sharafu played a sensational innings where he controlled the proceedings and played his merry way and got to his half century in style. To bolster the innings even more, Jason Holder played a blinder of a knock down the order. His knock of 22 runs of just 7 balls saw the ball flying to all parts of the ground. A big six into the stands by Holder on the last ball of the innings took ADKR to a terrific total of 182. The onus was now on the ADKR bowlers to defend this total and steer the team to victory.
View this post on Instagram
The ADKR bowlers came out in full force to defend the total and were all over the MI Emirates like a rash in the powerplay itself. The pair of Mayers and David Willey breathed fire as they rocked the MIE batters early and reduced them to 17/3 in just 3 overs. Both picked up crucial wickets and set the tone in the powerplay for the other bowlers to capitalise. ADKR bossed the proceedings all throughout the course of the second innings as Jason Holder joined the wicket-taking party and MIE were further skittled to 69/5. Kieron Pollard’s knock kept the Emirates in the game for a short period of time but the ADKR bowlers were too good in their execution and didn’t allow any easy runs. As a result of their tremendous bowling performance, ADKR won the game by a whopping 42 runs and registered their 3rd win of the season. This victory will do wonders to the confidence of the ADKR camp and they will be aiming to scale up even further in the coming games. A sensational batting effort coupled by a disciplined bowling effort handed ADKR this stunning victory and they will be aiming to replicate such performances again and again in their next games as the road to the knockout stages inches closer. All in all, it was a magical night in Abu Dhabi as ADKR sealed such an epic victory through a sensational performance.
