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AUB won by 4 wickets

11:51 PM IST, 8:21 PM LOCAL TIME: Sometimes the strongest teams are not the ones that avoid trouble... but the ones that keep finding answers when trouble arrives. Did Akcel United Brussels make it two wins from two matches? They certainly did. In a chase of 175, Brussels overcame multiple twists to reach 178/6 and defeat Antwerp Anchors by four wickets with six balls to spare. The Anchors had earlier posted 174/9 after a blazing start from Max Chu and a milestone-filled innings from Martin Guptill. Yet, every time Antwerp threw a punch, Brussels found one of their own. Jason Roy laid the foundation. Thomas Rogers changed the tempo. Dale Phillips finished the job. The result? Another statement victory for a side that is quickly becoming the team to beat.

Let's rewind a bit....

How did Antwerp Anchors build their innings? With fireworks from ball one. The first six overs belonged largely to Max Chu, who tore into the bowling attack. After 8 runs came from the first over and 10 from the second, Chu unleashed absolute carnage in the third over, smashing Sheldon Cottrell for 22 runs with two fours and two sixes. The fourth over brought a landmark moment as Martin Guptill reached 10,000 T20 runs with a boundary. Khalid Ahmadi finally broke through, removing Chu for a stunning 35 off 18 balls, but the Powerplay still ended at a commanding 68/1. At that stage, the Anchors looked set for something huge.

Did Brussels fight back during the middle overs? Yes. And Danru Ferns led the charge brilliantly. Sher Ali was bowled for 6 in the seventh over before Brussels gradually slowed the scoring rate. Antwerp reached 99/2 at the strategic timeout and crossed the 100-run mark in just 10.2 overs. Guptill was cruising on 44 and looked ready for a match-defining knock. But the game flipped dramatically in the space of two deliveries. Jack Jarvis bowled Wihan Lubbe for 18 at 114/3, and on the very next ball, Chris Greaves dismissed Guptill for 44. Two wickets. Two balls. Suddenly, Brussels had forced their way back into the contest.

What happened at the death? Chaos. Boundaries. Wickets. More chaos. JJ Smit briefly reignited the innings with a brutal 23 off 12 balls, including three sixes, before Ferns returned to bowl him with a clever slower delivery. Ferns finished with exceptional figures of 3/15 from four overs. Sheldon Cottrell removed Mark Watt, Burhan Niaz was run out without scoring, David Wiese fell lbw to Ferns, and Ruben Trumpelmann became another run-out victim in the final over. Antwerp still managed 174/9, thanks in part to 16 extras, but after being 114/2, they may have felt 190 was within reach. Brussels, meanwhile, walked off believing they had dragged the score back into chaseable territory.

Now... THE CHASE!!!

So how did the chase begin? Calmly. Confidently. Professionally. Jason Roy and Alex Hales ensured there was no panic despite the size of the target. After scoring 5 in the first over, Brussels accelerated beautifully. The second over yielded 12 runs, the third produced 14, and the fifty arrived in just 5.2 overs. Roy was elegant and aggressive, striking six boundaries in his 39. Hales added a useful 15, including a six. The Powerplay closed at 52/1 after Mark Watt tempted Hales into a mistimed shot. Advantage Brussels? Slightly. But the chase was far from over.

Who controlled the middle overs? For a while, it was a battle between JJ Smit and Thomas Rogers. Smit struck in the eighth over, bowling Rilee Rossouw for 9 and reducing Brussels to 61/2. Yet Rogers arrived with one plan. Attack. Three huge sixes flew into the crowd as he blasted 23 from his first 12 deliveries. At the 10-over strategic timeout, Brussels were perfectly balanced at 90/2, needing exactly 85 from the final ten overs. Roy was approaching another important contribution, while Rogers was turning the required rate into a mere suggestion.

When did Antwerp find hope again? Enter David Wiese. The veteran all-rounder transformed the game with clever changes of pace. First, he removed Roy for 39 at 91/3. Then, after Brussels crossed 100 in the 11th over, he struck again by dismissing Rogers for a magnificent 41 off just 20 balls. Those two wickets changed the mood entirely. The set batters were gone. The chase had suddenly become uncertain. But then came Andries Gous. Two consecutive sixes against Wiese in a 19-run fourteenth over shifted the pressure back. Wiese eventually had the last laugh by bowling Gous for 18, but Brussels remained ahead at 139/5 after 15 overs.

Could Antwerp still force a dramatic finish? Absolutely. JJ Smit ensured they had one final opportunity. He bowled Chris Greaves for 5 and completed excellent figures of 2/22 from four overs. At one stage, Brussels needed 13 from 12 balls, and the tension was beginning to rise. But Dale Phillips stayed remarkably composed. While wickets fell around him, he continued finding boundaries at crucial moments. His unbeaten 42 from just 24 balls proved to be the difference. Every big shot pushed Antwerp further away from the game and brought Brussels closer to another win.

Martin Guptill (Antwerp Anchors Captain): (On the match and the opposition chase) "Well, look, I thought we were really close. It was fought right to the end. Obviously, on a wicket like this, you need someone to play really well. I thought Dale came out and played exceptionally well. He used his feet to perfection, hit different areas to what other people do, and he did it really well. But look, I thought we were really in it right until the end, and unfortunately, we just came out on the wrong side today.

(On David Wiese's performance) Oh, 100%. I mean, that's T20 cricket, right? You're going to have good days, you're going to have bad days. You're going to start well and then have days like today. So look, he'll bounce back really well. He's one of our most experienced campaigners. So, I'm backing him on this type of wicket to come back and be one of our better bowlers moving forward.

(On reaching 10,000 T20 runs) Oh, look, you don't play for these milestones, but when they come along, they're nice to tick off along the way. So I'm happy to do it, but I did half a job today. I'm disappointed in the way I got out when we had lost a wicket the previous ball at the end of the last over. And then for me to get out the next ball, I think that's where the innings really turned.

(On the batting responsibility in the closing overs) It puts more onus on the batters, myself included, to be able to take it to the end of the innings and make sure that we utilise those last five overs where we can really hurt teams.",

What will both teams take away from this contest? Antwerp Anchors will take confidence from a strong batting display in their first outing, particularly the efforts of Chu, Guptill, and Smit. But they may also wonder what might have happened had they converted 114/2 into something closer to 190. Akcel United Brussels, meanwhile, will celebrate another clinical chase. Roy built it. Rogers accelerated it. Phillips finished it. Two matches. Two victories. And a growing reputation. Cricket often rewards teams that keep their balance when momentum swings. Brussels did exactly that today.

Until then, I am Dev Rajawat, signing off, along with the scorer Paras Yadav. That’s it from our side. Thanks for joining. But cricket doesn’t sleep. Plenty is happening around the world. Switch tabs, follow the fun. Goodbye from this tab! TAKE CARE! BREATHE AND SMILE! CIAO!!!!