DUBAI: Desert Vipers continued their impressive run in the International League T20 with a comprehensive four-wicket victory over Sharjah Warriorz at Dubai International Stadium on Saturday, a result that guaranteed them a top-two finish in the points table.
A clinical bowling performance, led by player-of-the-match David Payne, set up a straightforward chase as the Vipers registered their seventh win from eight matches to move clear at the summit with 14 points.
Payne spearheaded the attack with an incisive spell that dismantled the Warriorz batting line-up, finishing with figures of 3 for 14. He struck twice inside the powerplay to remove Johnson Charles and Tom Kohler-Cadmore, conceding just nine runs from his three opening overs as Sharjah crawled to 28/2 after six overs.
Pressure was maintained from both ends as Khuzaima Tanveer and Naseem Shah kept runs to a minimum, before Payne struck again just after the powerplay to dismiss James Rew for a duck. Tight overs from Dan Lawrence and Naseem further strangled the scoring, with the Warriorz unable to find momentum through the middle overs.
Regular wickets continued to fall as Noor Ahmad and Sam Curran applied sustained pressure. Noor removed Ethan D’Souza with a sharp stumping and later trapped Harmeet Singh lbw, while Curran dismissed Sikandar Raza cheaply. Tom Abell offered lone resistance with an unbeaten 35, but found little support as the Warriorz slid from 76/7 to 90 all out.
In reply, the Vipers lost early wickets but never allowed the chase to drift. Taskin Ahmed struck twice to remove Fakhar Zaman and Hasan Nawaz, and Max Holden fell soon after, leaving the Vipers 38/3 at the end of the powerplay.
Sam Curran anchored the innings with a composed 37 from 31 deliveries, rotating the strike efficiently alongside Dan Lawrence to keep the required rate under control. Despite disciplined spells from Taskin, Adil Rashid and Dwaine Pretorius, the Warriorz were unable to build sustained pressure.
Late wickets briefly delayed the inevitable, but Tom Bruce’s late six and four in the 13th over effectively sealed the contest before Vriitya Aravind clipped the winning run to complete the chase with 37 balls to spare.
After the match, Payne said his success came from adapting his plans to the conditions and opposition.
“My plans were slightly different to usual tonight,” he said. “It was about bowling across the bat and matching up against their strengths. Having such a strong bowling attack around me takes a lot of pressure off.”
Warriorz captain Sikandar Raza admitted his side struggled to adapt.
“We’ve won our games when batting first, but while chasing we haven’t quite found the right combinations,” he said. “For us now, every game is like a final.”
