Abu Dhabi Knight Riders sealed their place in the top four of the DP World ILT20 Season 4 with an impressive 32-run win over the Gulf Giants at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. In the final league match of the season, the Knight Riders performed when it mattered most and will now take on the Dubai Capitals in the eliminator on January 1, 2026.
Meanwhile, Desert Vipers will face MI Emirates in Qualifier 1 on December 30, with a place in the finals at stake. A massive 131-run opening partnership between Michael Pepper (83 runs off 51 balls) and Phil Salt (72 not out off 56 balls) took Abu Dhabi Knight Riders into the playoffs with a 32-run win over Gulf Giants. Brilliant half-centuries from both made a strong score of 179 runs for 1 wicket.
In reply, Moeen Ali’s aggressive half-century briefly threatened to turn the contest, but with little support from the other end, the chase soon lost momentum. A late double strike from Sunil Narine and Andre Russell sealed the result, ensuring the target remained out of reach for the Gulf giants.
Defending 180 to win, Jason Holder had already set the tone by dismissing Rahmanullah Gurbaz for a duck in the very first over, before dismissing James Vince (19 off 10). Ajay Kumar joined the wicket-takers with the wicket of Ben Kellaway (5 of 8) in the fifth over, while Narine conceded just five runs in his first two overs. At the end of the power play, the Knight Riders reduced the Giants to 32/3.
Moeen Ali (79 off 49) capped the Giants’ innings with a counterattacking effort. After a long drought, the Englishman broke the shackles by hitting a six off Liam Livingstone in the eighth over, followed by two fours and a six off Piyush Chawla in the ninth over.
He completed his half-century in 31 balls and, during this, made a brief but valuable partnership of 45 runs in 31 balls with Kyle Mayers (6 of 10). However, Sunil Narine struck twice in the 15th over, dismissing Mayers and then Sean Dixon for ducks, giving the Knight Riders a stranglehold.
Despite setbacks at the other end, Moeen continued to fight. But the game turned decisively in the 18th over. Andre Russell delivered the knockout blow by dismissing Moeen and then Ayan Khan (0 for 1) in consecutive balls as the death overs were expertly closed out. Knight Riders tightened the screws in the end, restricting the Giants to 147/9 and sealing an emphatic win.
Batting first, Abu Dhabi Knight Riders’ powerplay set the stage for a win-win situation with openers Salt & Pepper racing to a 56-run partnership during the phase. Azmatullah Umarzai was dismissed for 20 in the fifth over, hitting three sixes—two of which were hit by Pepper.
Pepper then reached his half-century in just 31 balls, while Salt supported him with a more conservative strike rate. The runs continued to flow, and the pair brought up a 100-run partnership in 67 balls—only the second century partnership of the season. Ayan Khan finally broke the partnership when Pepper dismissed Mark Adair in the 15th over. Pepper’s attack included six fours and four sixes.
In the 17th over, Salt scored a half-century in a maximum of 44 balls over cow corner. After this, the Knight Riders conceded 18 runs in the last over with the help of two consecutive sixes from Salt and made a partnership of 48 runs with Liam Livingstone (18* off 13 balls) and ended the innings at 179/1.
“It was about being patient and waiting for the right match-up. You see which bowlers you can face and then try to maximize your time on strike. When the spinners came into the attack, Salt allowed me to face most of the balls, and I was happy to take the responsibility. As a group, we need to keep working hard,” said Player of the Match Michael Pepper.
Meanwhile, Gulf Giants captain James Vince said, “It was a surface where they scored 20 to 30 runs evenly. We were not able to strike early with the ball, and that’s full credit to the way Pepper and Salt carried on with their innings. Our bowling was not at the level we needed, and the batting conditions were challenging. Moeen played a really good innings for us, but six losses in a row is tough.”