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So, that is it from myself, Karthik Raj and my co-commentator, Bidipto Datta. Do switchover to the ongoing ILT20 game between Abu Dhabi Knight Riders-Sharjah Warriors or the BPL game between Rangpur Riders-Sylhet Strikers. There is always plenty of cricketing action at Sportskeeda.
Shimron Hetmyer: I was just trying to play with a clear mind. Tough to come out for a must-win game. I try to keep it as simple as possible, make sure to watch a few balls and see what the wicket is doing before taking off.
Shimron Hetmyer has been named as the 'Player of the Match'
James Vince, Giants skipper: "Good performance on the whole. 180 was a good score, was one of the slower pitches. Chased a game against the Vipers previously, toss is less important in a day game. Bowlers did well to pull things back. Coming back from pressure has been a big plus for us. Hales' wicket was big, took a sting out of them. How people will pull up will dictate whether we experiment or not."
Colin Munro, Desert Vipers skipper: “Losing is never easy but I think it’s the way we went about it. The batting and bowling and the efforts on the field were not good enough. It’s flabbergasting with the number of dropped catches in the tournament, hopefully the boys go back to the drawing board after this. Rohan has been good for us and is finding the right tempo, hopefully he can continue.”
Time for the Post-match Presentation!
A pretty tame end to the game as the Desert Vipers fall short by 25 runs. This seals a top-2 spot for Gulf Giants meaning that they will face the Desert Vipers for a third time in the Qualifier 1. Chasing 181 for victory, the duo of Rohan Mustafa and Alex Hales got off to a flier scoring 42 runs off the first three overs. However, a few quiet overs resulted in the opening pair falling quickly across the sixth and seven overs. Skipper Colin Munro's inconsistent form also continued as he holed out to David Wiese off Carlos Brathwaite. Wiese was in action once again as Sherfane Rutherford fell cheaply off Gerhard Erasmus' bowling in the tenth over.
The Vipers continued to collapse with Billings getting a slight inside-edge to Tom Banton off Chris Jordan in the 12th over. The duo of Tom Curran and Benny Howell looked like they were about to pull out a late rescue act. However, the latter's 19-run cameo was brought to an end by Dominic Drakes. Thereafter, the experienced duo of David Wiese and Chris Jordan finished the job in a professional manner even as Curran produced a few boundaries in the end. With this, the Giants also sealed a league double over the Desert Vipers with the two sides being the best two teams in the competition.
20
overs
155/6score
0
0
0
0
1
1
runs
Jake Lintott*
4(6)
Tom Curran
42(33)
Carlos Brathwaite
1/34
19.6 Carlos Brathwaite to Jake Lintott, GULF GIANTS WIN AND DO THE DOUBLE OVER DESERT VIPERS! Full on off, a slap across the line from the front foot, and a single is all they get out of it!
DESERT VIPERS 155-6 (20)
Tom Curran 42 (33)' Rohan Mustafa 28 (20) Alex Hales 26 (15)
Aayan Afzal Khan 18-1 Chris Jordan 26-1 David Wiese 27-1
19.5 Carlos Brathwaite to Tom Curran, full and slow outside off, a massive swing of the blade, a big miscue and a safe landing to deep point, for a single this time!
19.4 Carlos Brathwaite to Tom Curran, low full toss on middle, clipped away to deep backward square-leg, and finally, the run gets refused yet again!
19.3 Carlos Brathwaite to Tom Curran, good length slower ball on off, hit hard, down to long-off from the back foot, for no run, because Curran refuses the single.
DRS taken to check the LBW. It seemed to be heading down the leg-side! Yes, ball-tracking confirms so.
19.2 Carlos Brathwaite to Tom Curran, full on leg-stump, another swing and a miss across the line, but again, no bat on ball and this isn't a leg-bye either. But VINCE REVIEWS for LBW!
It is a fair delivery. There is no bat on ball but the impact is way outside the line of leg-stump! Total waste of time! REVIEW LOST!
19.1 Carlos Brathwaite to Tom Curran, over the wicket, full down leg, a miss of the flick shot and a flick on the pads to short fine, for no run!
Just a single taken as Tom Curran will keep strike. He will require a herculean 28 runs off the last over. Carlos Brathwaite should be the man entrusted with the responsibility for Gulf Giants.
19
overs
153/6score
4
4
0
0
0
1
runs
Tom Curran*
41(28)
Jake Lintott
3(5)
Chris Jordan
1/26
18.6 Chris Jordan to Tom Curran, short and wide outside off, lifted over backward point from the back foot, but a good stop in the deep, prevents the boundary and keeps it to only one run!
18.5 Chris Jordan to Tom Curran, full toss outside off, slapped straight to mid-off along the ground, but for no run again.