The Gulf Giants delivered a ruthless all-around performance, blowing away the Dubai Capitals to record 3 wins in 3 games in the first ILT20. When asked to bat first, the Giants put his 18 1/6 up on the board before bowlers ran past their opponents and he bowled for just 80 in 15 overs.
Rehan Ahmed scored his second over with a hat-trick, but he was soon sent back by Udana Isuru. James Vince then took over and by the end of the powerplay he led the team to 48/1. Chris Lynn struggled with timing that night, but Vince pushed forward. He defeated Fabian Allen with a pair of six and four consecutive deliveries to bring his third consecutive 50 to the tournament.
Two more 6s to Mujeeb Ur Rahman followed and Vince set up for a big score. However, as the batting side changed fairly quickly from his 104/1 to 121/5, the Capitals staged a commendable comeback with fast wickets. At this point there was a real threat of the Giants collapsing, but Simron Hetmaier stepped up when his team needed him the most, clearing the ropes three times to finally reach 180+. I came up with an important cameo to lead.
That goal proved too much for the Capitals, especially after losing out-form Robin Utappa early in the chase. Joe Root made three boundaries but struggled most, seeing opposing hitters fall in quick succession. David Wiese beat his Chirag Suri and Rovman Powell in the same over, and Yusuf Pathan also scored his 3/3 he did well in two overs.
Half the team were back in the pavilion with just 44 runs on the board as Rehan Ahmed cast his Root. Aside from Root, only Dasun Shanaka managed to reach double figures when Jordan finally hit Woodwork his third and put the Capitals away with just 80.
Brief scores: Gulf Giants 181/6 in 20 overs (James Vince 76, Shimron Hetmyer 37*; Akif Raja 2/23) beat Dubai Capitals 80 in 14.3 overs (Dasun Shanaka 23; David Wiese 3/3, Chris Jordan 3/12) by 101 runs.