SHARJAH: MI Emirates booked their place in the International League T20 final with a convincing seven-wicket victory over Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in Qualifier 2 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday.
Despite an unbeaten half-century from Alishan Sharafu, the Knight Riders were restricted to 120/8, with Allah Ghazanfar starring with the ball, finishing with figures of 3 for 24.
The Emirates’ Shakib Al-Hasan and Tom Banton lcombined for an 82-run partnership to set up a final showdown against the Desert Vipers at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday.
MI Emirates made an early breakthrough in the second over, when Michael Pepper was run out for one by a superb direct hit from Andre Fletcher. Brandon McMullen followed soon after, trapped LBW by Muhammad Rohid for 13, as the Knight Riders limped to 31/2 at the end of the powerplay.
Liam Livingstone endured a difficult stay at the crease before being dismissed by Rohid in the seventh over, departing for just four.
With the spinners applying sustained pressure, boundaries were hard to come by, aside from Arab Gul’s 12th over, which went for 13 runs.
Alex Hales and Sharafu attempted to rebuild with a 47-run stand off 44 balls, but Ghazanfar struck with the final delivery of the 14th over to remove Hales for 29. Ghazanfar returned late in the innings to claim two wickets in the 18th over, dismissing Jason Holder and Sunil Narine in quick succession, as the Knight Riders closed on 120/8, with Sharafu reaching his half-century off the final ball.
In reply, MI Emirates were pegged back early when Fletcher fell for five in the second over to Ajay Kumar. Holder and Narine maintained the pressure during the powerplay, with Banton and Muhammad Waseem finding it difficult to rotate the strike as MI Emirates reached 26/1 after six overs.
The pair steadied the innings before Narine trapped Waseem LBW in the eighth over. Shakib then joined Banton and shifted the momentum decisively, striking Livingstone for a six and two fours in a 17-run 12th over, with the duo bringing up their 50-run stand in just 29 balls.
Banton reached his half-century off 49 deliveries in the 15th over, taking 18 runs off Holder to leave MI Emirates needing just eight runs from the final five overs. Although Shakib departed in the 16th over, MI Emirates completed the chase with 23 balls to spare to seal their place in the final.
Player of the Match Al-Hasan said winning the toss had been crucial.
“The bowlers were outstanding and kept picking up wickets, which made the difference. With the bat, the focus was on batting time and managing overs, especially against the spinners,” he said.
“That was my role today. In pressure games, losing wickets makes it very hard to recover.”
Knight Riders captain Holder said his team struggled to build momentum on a challenging wicket.
“Still, considering where we were midway through the tournament, I thought it was a solid effort overall. We came up short tonight but the commitment throughout the campaign was excellent,” he said.
“Andre was outstanding and everyone contributed at different stages of the tournament.”
