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SHARJAH: The Dubai Capitals were unstoppable on Monday evening as they outshone the Desert Vipers with the ball and bat to cruise to a massive nine-wicket win in the final group game of the DP World ILT20 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

The Capitals’ Qais Ahmad finished with a stunning spell of 4 for 25, while Gulbadin Naib lived up to his billing as one of the best allrounders by striking a brilliant unbeaten 55. The win caps an impressive turnaround for the Capitals, who began their campaign with just one win in four games but then regrouped to win four of their last five matches to finish second on the points table.

The Dubai Capitals will now take on the same opponents, the Desert Vipers, in Qualifier 1 on Wednesday, Feb. 5, while MI Emirates will face Sharjah Warriorz in the Eliminator on Feb. 6 with the winner facing the loser of Qualifier 1 for a place in the final on Feb. 7.

Chasing 138, Adam Rossington and Shai Hope took the fight to the Vipers from the first over with some aggressive batting. The duo put up 34 runs in the first four overs, with Rossington smashing 20 runs in just 15 deliveries. His blitzkrieg came to an end after he hit David Payne for a maximum, but the Englishman had him caught behind the very next delivery. Naib came to bat at one-down and made his intentions clear right away by clobbering Sam Curran for a superb four as the Capitals amassed 50/1 at the end of the powerplay. Wanindu Hasaranga threatened to stall the Capitals’ progress by conceding just six runs in his next two overs, but the batters found the boundaries when they needed them the most to coast to 76/1 at the end of 10 overs.

The Capitals remained comfortably ahead of the required run rate, and Naib flirted with his luck in the 11th over. He mistimed two shots, and both top edges sailed past the boundary ropes. The Vipers had a golden opportunity to inflict some damage when Hope skied a slow ball, but the chance went in vain as the catch was dropped and the duo soon crossed the 50-run mark for the second wicket. Hasaranga came back to finish his spell with another tight over, conceding just four runs, but Khuzaima Tanveer was clobbered for 12 runs in the 14th over as the Capitals motored on. They needed 26 runs off the final six overs and were firmly in control of the chase.

Naib flexed his muscles as he hit Tanveer for a maximum over deep midwicket to bring up his 50 off just 29 deliveries. The Vipers’ poor fielding continued as Naib was dropped, again, on the next ball. Soon after, Hope played a fine pull shot to bring up his fourth 50 of the tournament to lead the Capitals to a commanding nine-wicket victory.

Earlier, the Dubai Capitals put up a scintillating display to bowl out the Desert Vipers for 137. Obed McCoy was on the money as he struck off his first ball when Azam Khan edged it to Naib in the slips. Alex Hales threatened to get going but McCoy outfoxed him with a slower one and the Vipers were down to 39/2 in five overs. Curran joined Dan Lawrence, and the two of them offered their side some much-needed solidity with a crucial 45-run partnership. They found boundaries at will and upped the run rate as the Vipers clawed their way back into the game after losing two early wickets. One of the standout moments came in the eighth over when Curran launched a monstrous six off Naib that sailed over the stands and into the Sharjah streets.

However, Curran was undone by spin as Qais got him with a wrong’un and he departed for 28 off 20. At the halfway mark, the Vipers had 82 runs on the board for the loss of three wickets. Qais caused further trouble for the Vipers by dismissing Lawrence in his next over for a well-made 44. Lawrence’s departure triggered a batting collapse as Sherfane Rutherford was dismissed for zero before Qais picked up two more wickets in the 14th over. The wrist-spinner captured his third wicket when he bowled Adam Hose, and two balls later, he trapped Michael Jones LBW to finish with impressive figures of 4/25. The Vipers were down to 104/7, and the runs dried up. Ali Naseer made a quick departure and the Vipers managed only 21 runs off the final four overs before being bowled out for a modest total of 137. The Vipers lost their final seven wickets for 36 runs.

Desert Vipers captain Ferguson said: “These things happen. I will still back the boys. Qais bowled exceptionally. We will have to go back to the drawing board and come back again. We have been outstanding and a little blip in the end will not change anything. Max had a back twinge, but he should hopefully be fine for the playoffs.”

Player of the match Qais Ahmed commented: “When you are playing with such legendary cricketers like Sam Billings, they always support me and give me confidence. He kept saying you are our main bowler and will take wickets. The wicket was very good for spin, so I tried my best to turn the ball. I am happy for these four wickets. Of course, I enjoyed that wicket, Sam Curran is a big wicket.”

Brief scores:

Dubai Capitals beat Desert Vipers by nine wickets

Desert Vipers: 137/10 in 19.4 overs (Dan Lawrence 44, Sam Curran 28, Alex Hales 18, Qais Ahmad 4 for 25, Obed McCoy 3 for 22)

Dubai Capitals: 138/1 in 17.1 overs (Gulbadin Naib 55 not out, Shai Hope 52 not out, Adam Rossington 27, David Payne 1 for 29)

Player of the Match: Qais Ahmed

MELBOURNE: Australia batsman Usman Khawaja has condemned a radio station’s decision to drop cricket journalist Peter Lalor from its coverage of the Sri Lanka test series over social media posts related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Australian radio station SEN confirmed on Tuesday it had parted ways with Lalor, the former chief cricket writer of The Australian newspaper, after dialogue with him about some of the commentary on his social media.

Lalor’s feed on X includes re-posts of news stories about Israeli attacks in Gaza and accusations of genocide levelled at the Israeli government.

Pakistan-born Khawaja, who has been vocal in his support for Palestinians, wrote on Instagram that Lalor “deserved better.”

“Standing up for the people of Gaza is not antisemitic nor does it have anything to do with my Jewish brothers and sisters in Australia, but everything to do with the Israeli government and their deplorable actions,” Khawaja said.

“It has everything to do with justice and human rights. Unfortunately hatred toward the Jewish and Muslim community will always exist.”

Australia has been grappling with a series of antisemitic attacks on synagogues, buildings and cars since the beginning of the Israel-Gaza war in late-2023.

Lalor, who was working as a freelance commentator for SEN, said he was told by the station’s management that there were accusations he was antisemitic, which he objected to.

“I was told my retweeting was not balanced, and insensitive to one side and that many people had complained,” he said in a statement to subscribers on his Cricket et Al substack.

SEN station boss Craig Hutchison said he and Lalor had a different view of the impact of the commentary on his social media.

“We respect Pete as a journalist and long-time contributor to the game but also acknowledge the fear that many families in our community feel right now, and we also need to respect that,” Hutchison told the Sydney Morning Herald.

Australia lead the two-match test series 1-0 after beating Sri Lanka by an innings and 242 runs in the opener in Galle.

The second test starts in Galle on Thursday.