DV 193/5 in 20 Overs [Alex Hales 58(36), Dan Lawrence 49(32); Jason Holder 2/24 in 4 Overs] beat ADKR 140/10 [Joe Clarke 55(32), Jason Holder 27(9); Nathan Sowter 3/44 in 4 Overs] by 53 runs.
The Abu Dhabi Knight Riders faced off against the Desert Vipers at the majestic Dubai International Stadium in an exciting contest. After picking up their first win of the tournament, the Knight Riders aimed to stake their claim on another victory and settle the score for the loss against DV at their home. Under the scorching sun of Dubai, both teams clashed with an aim to pick up two points and soar high into the points table. This game marked to be a thrilling clash and one which many were eager to watch.
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After being put into bowl first, ADKR took to the field with a lot of aggressive intent and were raring to lay out a stunning performance. Bowlers looked to execute their plans and keep tight lines in order to keep the run scoring down. The disciplined bowling was rewarded early as Jason Holder picked up the crucial wicket of Fakhar Zaman in the powerplay itself. The ADKR bowlers looked to make the most of the early breakthrough and take a hold of the game. However, fighting partnerships from Alex Hales & Dan Lawrence, helped the Vipers take the total forward in a big way. Later, Sam Curran also joined the party as DV took full control of the proceedings. Skipper Sunil Narine tried all the tricks in order to stop the DV in their tracks. Despite bowling to their plans, the ADKR bowlers faced a hard time stopping the DV batters. The Vipers ended up with a big target of 193 at the end of 1st innings and now it was all upon the batters to take the field with intensity and chase down this total to hand ADKR their 2nd consecutive win of the season.
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ADKR stepped into the run chase with intent and aimed to take on the DV bowlers with aggressive mindset. Despite losing an early wicket, ADKR kept going hard at the ball, with Joe Clarke leading the charge. Clarke displayed excellent timing and elegant strokes while scoring at a brisk pace. The ADKR innings looked to progress quite well with Clarke and Kyle Mayers putting on a superb partnership. But eventually the Clarke-Mayers partnership came to an end with Kyle Mayers losing his wicket. These wickets triggered a collapse for the Knight Riders from which they were unable to recover. To add to the issues, an unfortunate run out saw the end of Joe Clarke’s wonderful innings of 55 runs. Even a lower order blitz of 27 runs from just 9 balls from Jason Holder didn’t help the Knight Riders get over the line as the Vipers won the game by 53 runs. ADKR will aim to regroup quickly and come back stronger tomorrow as they face the Gulf Giants at this same venue.
