Bangla Tigers’ bowling attack proved too hot for Northern Warriors, who suffered a 30-run defeat in the Abu Dhabi T10 on Thursday. After scoring 119 runs on the board of Bangla Tigers on a difficult pitch, the Warriors struggled to hold on and never threatened a target, losing wickets at regular intervals.
Left-arm spinner Tom Hartley proved to be an exceptional performer with the ball, picking up two wickets for just 12 runs. Earlier, the second wicket partnership of 96 runs between Hazratullah Zazai and Faf du Plessis had ensured that the Tigers posted a challenging total on the board.
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When the Warriors began their chase of 120, Hartley spilled the first blood for the Tigers by sending back Kenner Lewis in the first over. The Warriors’ start went from bad to worse when Moeen Ali stepped up to James Faulkner in the next over, only to hear the stumps behind him rattle. Samit Patel and Rovman Powell came together but it became difficult to go against some quality bowling. Powell soon hit a looser flick on the leg side straight into the hands of the fine leg fielder.
At the halfway mark, the innings was faltering at 31/3. With the run-out of Samit Patel in the seventh over, the last hope of the Warriors’ return also ended. Umair Ali showed mastery in picking up the slow deliveries and launching them into the stands, but his cameo of 39 off 16 balls proved to be a matter of little late for the Warriors.
Earlier, the Tigers’ innings did not go smoothly as Imran Tahir cut opener Johnson Charles’ innings at the crease in the third over. After Charles departed, captain Faf du Plessis joined Zazai at the crease, who promoted himself up the order. However, the move didn’t work in the first few overs of the partnership as some smart bowling and the difficult pitch to bat kept both largely calm. As a result, Bangla Tigers could manage only 42 runs in the first five overs.
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The pace started from the seventh over. With only four runs off his first nine balls, du Plessis was forced to try something new and scooped Oshane Thomas over long leg for a maximum. It was a late attack debut to prove that the duo attacked the Warriors’ bowling attack. In the next over of Abhimanyu Mithun, both the batsmen hit a six each. But the harshest punishment was reserved for Tahir, who bowled the last over. The leg-spinner, who conceded only three runs in his first over, was hit by 26 runs by Zazai and du Plessis in his last over. In the final over, Zazai reached his half-century thanks to a chance dropped on the boundary. A strange boundary hat-trick from the captain’s bat in the final over took the Tigers to a challenging 119 runs.
Brief Scores: Bangla Tigers 119/1 (Hazratullah Zazai 55*, Faf du Plessis 38* Imran Tahir 1-29) beat Northern Warriors 89/6 (Umair Ali 39*, Samit Patel 15, Tom Hartley 2-12).
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