In a pivotal encounter at the Zayed Cricket Stadium on Sunday, the Dubai Capitals clinched a convincing six-wicket victory against the Gulf Giants. This crucial win propelled the Capitals to the third spot in the International League T20 (ILT20) team standings, while condemning the Giants to their fourth consecutive defeat in the tournament.
Mustafizur's Magical Over Shatters Giants' Hopes
The match's defining moment arrived during the 14th over of the Gulf Giants' innings. Mustafizur Rahman delivered a devastating spell, claiming three crucial wickets in a single over. This breakthrough came just as James Vince (36 off 34) and Azmatullah Omarzai (43 off 26) had stabilized the innings with a 66-run partnership, threatening to post a formidable total. Mustafizur's intervention, which included the wickets of both set batters, effectively broke the backbone of the batting lineup. His figures of 3 for 34 played a monumental role in restricting the Giants to a modest 156 all out in 19.5 overs.
Capitals' Chase: Jahangir Anchors, Powell Finishes in Style
In response, the Dubai Capitals' chase was built on a foundation of sensible batting. Opener Shayan Jahangir provided the anchor with a composed 48 off 44 balls, ensuring the required run rate never spiraled out of control. The innings faced a minor hiccup when Omarzai struck twice in the fifth over, but Jahangir held firm. The chase was then expertly sealed by the powerful Rovman Powell, who remained unbeaten on a blistering 47 from just 31 balls. His innings, punctuated by a boundary and three sixes, guided the Capitals to 162 for 4 with four balls to spare. Mohammad Nabi provided the finishing flourish in the final over.
Giants' Innings: Promising Start, Chaotic Collapse
Earlier, the Gulf Giants had raced to a flying start, thanks to Rahmanullah Gurbaz's explosive 25 from 11 balls. However, the momentum shifted after the powerplay. Haider Ali (2 for 24) and Nabi struck key blows. The middle-order recovery by Vince and Omarzai was undone by Mustafizur's game-changing over. The innings ended in disarray with a remarkable collapse in the final over, featuring three run-outs as the team slumped from 152 for 7 to 156 all out.
Dubai Capitals' stand-in skipper Mohammad Nabi hailed the team effort. "It was a complete team performance," he said. "The turning point was Mustafizur's over where we picked up three wickets. Haider was excellent in the powerplay and Fizz really changed the game. Rovman paced the chase smartly."
Gulf Giants captain James Vince rued another familiar collapse. "It's been a similar pattern. We get into a position to add another 20-30 runs, but lose wickets in clusters. That puts immense pressure on the new batters," he admitted.
Brief Scores: Gulf Giants 156 all out in 19.5 overs (Omarzai 43, Vince 36; Mustafizur 3/34) lost to Dubai Capitals 162/4 in 19.2 overs (Jahangir 48, Powell 47*; Omarzai 2/27) by six wickets.
