MI Emirates set up a final date with Desert Vipers in the fourth edition of the International League T20 with a comfortable win over Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in the second qualifier in Sharjah. MI Emirates secured their second ILT20 final thanks to a superb all-round performance. After a brilliant attack by AM Ghazanfar that restricted ADKR to 120 for 8, Shakib Al Hasan and Tom Banton shared an 82-run partnership to reach the target in the 17th over. It was another impressive performance from the 2024 champions as they chased down a modest target of 121 with seven wickets in hand.
Invited to bat, the Knight Riders lost wickets steadily throughout their innings. Michael Pepper’s run-out in the first over triggered the collapse, followed by Mohammad Rohit Khan’s lbw dismissal of Brendon McMullen off the very first ball. Rohit’s second wicket was Liam Livingstone, leaving the opposition at 38/3 in the seventh over. Alex Hales and Alishan Sharafu tried to stabilize the innings in the middle, facing tough spells from the spinners and hitting boundaries along the way.
The Abu Dhabi Knight Riders had only managed 50 runs at halftime, and as they were trying to build on their momentum, Sharafu had hit a couple of sixes before Ghazanfar came back and had Hales caught at mid-on, who had made 29 off 36 balls. In the final over, Fazalhaq Farooqui and Ghazanfar further thwarted any hopes of a run-scoring win. Farooqui varied his pace to dismiss Andre Russell and Unmukt Chand, while Ghazanfar took the wickets of Jason Holder and Sunil Narine in one over. Rohit bowled tight yorkers in the final over, taking 2 for 19, while Sharafu brought up his fifty off the last ball of the innings.
MI had a poor start, losing Andre Fletcher in the second over and managing only 26 runs in the power play. Mohammad Wasim, despite hitting a few boundaries, struggled to establish himself and got his chance when Sunil Narine missed an easy chance, but the off-spinner made amends by dismissing him lbw in the seventh over. Following that dismissal, Shakib Al Hasan came to the crease, completely changing the course of the chase.
With no pressure of the asking rate, Shakib showed intent from the outset, defeating the spinners with sweeps, reverse sweeps, late cuts, and clean strikes. Meanwhile, Banton provided perfect support, rotating the strike, pressuring loose balls, and ensuring the innings never lost momentum as the third-wicket partnership steadily quashed any hope of a Knight Riders comeback. Banton accelerated, reaching his half-century with four fours in one over off Holder. Shakib was dismissed late, trying to finish the match in style, but Banton held on until the end and completed the chase.
Most Wins as Captain in T20 Cricket
| Player Name | No. of Wins as Captain |
| MS Dhoni | 192 |
| Rohit Sharma | 140 |
| James Vince | 112 |
| Faf du Plessis | 110 |
| Darren Sammy | 104 |
| Kieron Pollard | 100* |
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With this win, Kieron Pollard also created history in T20 cricket as captain, completing his 100 wins while at the helm in the format. Pollard became only the sixth captain in the history of T20 cricket to achieve the historic landmark and joins the elite list of MS Dhoni, James Vince, Rohit Sharma, Faf du Plessis, and Daren Sammy to do so in the shortest format of the game. Dhoni is on top of the list with a staggering 192 wins, while Rohit stands second, having secured 140 victories as captain of India and the Mumbai Indians.
What happened in the match?
As far as the match is concerned, MI Emirates restricted the Knight Riders to just 120 runs after electing to bowl first. Allah Ghazanfar, Mohammad Rohid Khan, and Fazalhaq Farooqui took seven wickets between them. Meanwhile, for Knight Riders, Alishan Sharafu scored an unbeaten 50, but the rest of the batsmen struggled, managing only 120 runs for the loss of eight wickets.
In response, MI Emirates struggled, and at 36/2 after 7.1 overs, it appeared the match would go to the wire. However, Shakib Al Hasan and Tom Banton had other plans, adding 82 runs for the third wicket, with Tom Banton scoring an unbeaten 63 off 53 balls. Emirates achieved the target in just 16.1 overs, once again securing their place in the final.