Hazratullah Zazai hit an unbeaten 59 off just 26 balls to help Bangladesh Tigers register a comprehensive nine-wicket win over Deccan Gladiators in the Abu Dhabi T10 match on Thursday. Tigers completed the target of 112 runs in 8.1 overs.
Will Jack and Zazai made a good run of a strong foundation provided by big hits from Johnson Charles at the top of the order. Their third win propelled the Bangla Tigers to third place in the points table, where they find themselves sandwiched between Deccan Gladiators and Delhi Bulls, both teams with three wins in their bags.
After hitting a 19-ball 67 in the previous match, Charles and Zazai gave Bangla Tigers another fine start to the innings. Charles fell to Odeon Smith in the second over, adding 34 runs on the board. His dismissal didn’t do much to stop the flow of runs as his replacement Jack displayed a full display of his shots to ensure that the required run rate was never too dangerous. Deccan Gladiators captain Wahab Riaz bowled the ball to Wanindu Hasaranga for his second over when Tigers decided to go for his batting powerplay. However, Zazai ended Hasranga’s threat by giving the leg-spinner three big hits on the leg side, taking his team closer to the target. The second six of his over created a 50-run partnership between him and Jack. The left-handed batsman completed his half-century in the next over when he hit another six off Sultan Ahmed in the eighth over. Well, the winning runs also came off his bat when he tossed Tom Banton at long-on for four overs.
Earlier, the Gladiators openers opened with a boundary but Mohammad Amir pulled the innings back by dismissing Tom-Kohler Cadmore in his first match of the tournament. James Faulkner and Karim Jamaat also took a wicket each with hat-tricks of sixes. With Andre Russell and Tom Banton at the crease, the Gladiators opted for a powerplay at the end of the fourth over. However, they could only go one over without losing a wicket as Benny Howell sent back Danger Man Russell at a slow pace. David Wiese started hitting sixes as soon as he came to the crease and he was taken aback by Banton’s dismissal in the seventh over. He found the right ally in Odeon Smith, whose eight-ball 26 took the Deccan Gladiators to the 100-run mark. 33 runs came from the last two overs of the Gladiators’ innings and helped them post a challenging 112 runs on the board.
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