Match Center

Right then, that is it from this one-sided affair where Gulf Giants dismantle Sharjah Warriors and go above them in the table to make things even more interesting. However, Sharjah Warriors needs to pick themselves up quickly as they are back in action against Abu Dhabi Knight Riders. That game will be played on 5th February, Monday at 8 pm IST (2.30 pm GMT), but as you know, you can always join us early for all the build-up for the game. Until then, cheers and goodbye!

Zohaib Zubair is the PLAYER OF THE MATCH for his outstanding spell with the ball. He starts by thanking God and says his confidence is really high and he is very happy to have contributed to the win. He adds that he has learned a lot from their bowling coach Ottis Gibson and also looks up to Shaheen Afridi as his inspiration.

James Vince, the victorious skipper of Gulf Giants says that he is very happy with the win and they knew that if they won here, they would be back in the top four. Tells that it was an important two points as a lot of teams are hanging around at the middle of the table. Praises Shimron Hetmyer and Jamie Overton for their batting towards the end and says that was the plan and credits his entire bowling unit as well for the win.

Tom Kohler-Cadmore, the captain of Sharjah Warriors says they didn't get going with the bat and can't dwell too long on this as they have another game without much break. He then says the pitch was hard against the spin and the Gulf Giants played really well. He appreciates Hettie and says he played a top-knock along with the bowlers chipping in well with the ball.

Presentation Time...

Earlier in the game, Gulf Giants posted the highest total at this ground this season courtesy of a smashing half-century from Shimron Hetmyer along with a quick-fire knock from Chris Lynn. Jamie Overton also helped them finish with a flurry. Sean Williams was the pick of the bowlers for Sharjah Warriors with three wickets while Chris Woakes, Daniel Sams, and Muhammad Jawadullah chipped in with one each, but they were pretty expensive overall. While chasing, the Giants were never really in it and ultimately were bundled out well short of the target and took a massive hit on their NRR as well.

Gulf Giants, on the other hand, will be extremely pleased with their bowling effort. Aayan Khan gave them a dream start with two wickets in the first two balls that set the tone for this game. Jamie Overton followed it up with another one to put the opponents on the backfoot. They did take a beating from Tom Kohler-Cadmore, but Dominic Drakes was able to remove him and they never really let the batters settle in and their catching fielding was on point as well. However, it was the spinner, Zohaib Zubair who was the pick of the bowlers for them as he ran through the middle order and picked up four crucial wickets while Chris Jordan wrapped things up with a one-handed stunner on his own bowling.

Sharjah Warriors got off the worst possible start as they lost Niroshan Dickwella and Joe Denly on the first two balls of this chase. Johnson Charles also couldn't manage to make much impact in this game. It was their skipper, Tom Kohler-Cadmore who gave them some hope by playing a few lusty blows. He was looking really good, but unfortunately hit one straight down the throat of the fielder after smacking 39 runs off just 23 balls, but got no real support from the other end. After that, the wickets fell like nine pins, but Lewis Gregory did show some fight and played a quick-fire cameo of 30 off just 19 balls before getting out. It turned out to be too much for the tail-enders as they were bowled out pretty soon after that, and fell short by a big margin of 79 runs.

A comprehensive victory for Gulf Giants! They have outplayed their opponent in all three departments and finally manages to get out of the bottom of the table. Not only that, the margin of victory is big that it pushes them to third place in the table. Also, with this victory, they do the double over the Sharjah Warriors.

OUT!TAKEN! What a catch by Chris Jordan to finish the game! Bowls it on a length and on middle, Nilansh Keswani drills it straight back. Chris Jordan on his follow-through puts out his right hand and the ball just sticks right in the bucket. Gulf Giants win this game by 79 runs.

Bowls a perfect yorker outside off. Nilansh Keswani fails to get any bat on it.

Comes from over the wicket and bowls this fuller and outside off angling it away, Nilansh Keswani tries to cream it on off but gets beaten on the outside edge.

Bangs it hard on a length outside off, Maheesh Theekshana cuts it to deep point for a couple more.

Another short delivery on middle and leg, Nilansh Keswani pulls it well in front of deep square leg for a single.

Digs this short and hits the deck hard over middle, Maheesh Theekshana awkwardly pulls it to long on for a single.

pitches this one fuller outside off, Maheesh Theekshana drives it to sweeper cover for a couple of runs.

Bowls it slower and fuller outside off, Nilansh Keswani cuts it to deep backward point for one.