123/10 (17.4)
CR : 6.96
144/10 (19.5)
CR : 7.26
Ghent Gladiators won by 21 runs 🏆
Player of the Match
Dwaine Pretorius
4/187(7)
17.4
W
Ali Khan to Abduljabar Jabarkhail
GONE! ALI KHAN DOES IT WITH HIS RAW PACE AND THE GHENT GLADIATORS STORM INTO THE FINALS! THEY'VE BEATEN THE ANTWERP ANCHORS BY 21 RUNS TODAY! IT HAS BEEN AN INCREDIBLE BOWLING EFFORT FROM THEM! Coming to the delivery, it was full and straight at the stumps from Ali Khan. It was pace on and Jabarkhail couldn't get behind the line. He was beaten due to the extra pace and the ball smashed into the stumps.
A Jabarkhail 0(4)
b A Khan
4s/6s
0/0
SR
0.00
Over 18
Antwerp Anchors 123/10
Abduljabar Jabarkhail0(4)
Peter Hatzoglou2(3)
Ali Khan2-23(2.4)
GHG won by 21 runs
7:03 PM IST, 3:33 PM Local Time: Ghent Gladiators have successfully cleaned the tail up and with this, they have registered a victory by 21 runs. The win helps Gladiators qualify for the finals, where they will face none other but the Antwerp Anchors.
After being given a target of 145, it seemed Antwerp Anchors would chase down the target with quite ease. However, things were not that easy for them as the Ghent Gladiators bowlers gave them a hard time. Ali Khan first got rid of Antwerp's skipper, Martin Guptill (3), in the initial overs.
Then came Tom Moores (24), who struck sixes at will but couldn't convert his start into something big and got out on a rank short delivery.
Gladiators spinners, Bernard Scholtz and JJ Smuts, bowled tightly. By the halfway mark, Anchors reached 71/4 and needed 74 from 60 balls.
However, veteran seam all-rounder Dwaine Pretorius had other plans and bowled some excellent wicket-to-wicket balls. He got rid of Lucky Ali and Hardus Viljoen in the same over. In the end, Pretorius ended up taking four wickets and brought his side right back into the game.
Anchors' Ruben Trumpelmann struck two back-to-back sixes against JJ Smuts in the death but perished soon after. Next over, pacer Ali Khan was brought back into the attack and he took the final wicket of Anchors' innings to give his side a 21-run victory and spot in the final.
With this, Gladiators have finished on top of the points table while Anchors have secured the second spot.
Pretorius was the pick of the bowlers with 4/18 while Scholtz and Ali Khan took two scalps apiece.
The Gladiators made good use of the surface, which had uneven bounce and was a bit on the slower side, to trouble the Antwerp Anchors batters.
After being given a target of 145, it seemed Antwerp Anchors would chase down the target with quite ease. However, things were not that easy for them as the Ghent Gladiators bowlers gave them a hard time. Ali Khan first got rid of Antwerp's skipper, Martin Guptill (3), in the initial overs.
Then came Tom Moores (24), who struck sixes at will but couldn't convert his start into something big and got out on a rank short delivery.
Gladiators spinners, Bernard Scholtz and JJ Smuts, bowled tightly. By the halfway mark, Anchors reached 71/4 and needed 74 from 60 balls.
However, veteran seam all-rounder Dwaine Pretorius had other plans and bowled some excellent wicket-to-wicket balls. He got rid of Lucky Ali and Hardus Viljoen in the same over. In the end, Pretorius ended up taking four wickets and brought his side right back into the game.
Anchors' Ruben Trumpelmann struck two back-to-back sixes against JJ Smuts in the death but perished soon after. Next over, pacer Ali Khan was brought back into the attack and he took the final wicket of Anchors' innings to give his side a 21-run victory and spot in the final.
With this, Gladiators have finished on top of the points table while Anchors have secured the second spot.
Pretorius was the pick of the bowlers with 4/18 while Scholtz and Ali Khan took two scalps apiece.
The Gladiators made good use of the surface, which had uneven bounce and was a bit on the slower side, to trouble the Antwerp Anchors batters.
Martin Guptill (Antwerp Anchors Captain)- "We were in a good position at the halfway stage but we just didn't bat well enough and were outplayed by them. We will go back to the drawing board and try to do the things that worked for us so far in the tournament. We have been really good in this competition and we're not panicking at the moment. It is just one game and if we can win that we can win the tournament. We will be back stronger."
Temba Bavuma (Ghent Gladiators Captain): "(On the result) Yeah, we're obviously very happy with the result. I think it was a good toss to win. The wicket got tougher and tougher to bat on as the game went on. We were a little bit indifferent about the 144 we scored, but I think the way we bowled definitely made it a challenging target.
(On defending a low score) I didn't really need to say much. The guys were already motivated. A lot of us were just excited to finally get out on the field because we hadn't really had many opportunities to play full games. From that point of view, everyone was eager to get going. In terms of our plans, everyone was very clear about what we wanted to do. We had a good understanding of how the wicket was playing from our batting innings, and we knew that if we could consistently hit the right areas and keep the stumps in play, we'd make life difficult for the batters.
(On the surface) Maybe. The wicket wasn't really one where you could just play your shots freely. Perhaps if we'd played a little more cricket, we might have adjusted a bit quicker. That said, I honestly don't know how much differently we would have approached it from a batting perspective. I think the wicket simply became more difficult as the game progressed. But if my calculations are right, we should be in the final tomorrow, so there are no excuses from our side.
(On areas to improve) We've got the result we wanted, and that's the most important thing. Now we just need to come back tomorrow and play our best brand of cricket. Nothing really changes from that perspective. It'll be the last time this group of players is together, so we'd like to make the most of that opportunity and finish on a high."
(On defending a low score) I didn't really need to say much. The guys were already motivated. A lot of us were just excited to finally get out on the field because we hadn't really had many opportunities to play full games. From that point of view, everyone was eager to get going. In terms of our plans, everyone was very clear about what we wanted to do. We had a good understanding of how the wicket was playing from our batting innings, and we knew that if we could consistently hit the right areas and keep the stumps in play, we'd make life difficult for the batters.
(On the surface) Maybe. The wicket wasn't really one where you could just play your shots freely. Perhaps if we'd played a little more cricket, we might have adjusted a bit quicker. That said, I honestly don't know how much differently we would have approached it from a batting perspective. I think the wicket simply became more difficult as the game progressed. But if my calculations are right, we should be in the final tomorrow, so there are no excuses from our side.
(On areas to improve) We've got the result we wanted, and that's the most important thing. Now we just need to come back tomorrow and play our best brand of cricket. Nothing really changes from that perspective. It'll be the last time this group of players is together, so we'd like to make the most of that opportunity and finish on a high."
Player of the Match: Dwaine Pretorius
Dwaine Pretorius (Ghent Gladiators)- "Definitely, it was a great feeling. It was frustrating to sit on the sidelines for most of the tournament due to the rain. The sun was out today and it was great. We bowled really well. We took quite a bit out of the previous game. Once the ball gets soft with the sun out, it gets difficult to bat. That is why we chose to bat first. Ali Khan and Ali Hasan with that partnership in the end, really saved us.
Once you get a few wickets early on defending a low score, it is always possible to win. It will be a great opportunity tomorrow to play a final for a brand new side in a brand new tournament. My mentor Imran Tahir says, 'You can always create history,' so yes believing in that."
Once you get a few wickets early on defending a low score, it is always possible to win. It will be a great opportunity tomorrow to play a final for a brand new side in a brand new tournament. My mentor Imran Tahir says, 'You can always create history,' so yes believing in that."
A clinical performance by Ghent Gladiators as they secure a win by 21 runs. With this, Gladiators secure a spot in the final, where they will face none other than Antwerp Anchors.
That's it from our live coverage of this game. This is Mohammad Anab signing off on behalf of my co-commentator Soumarya Dutta and our scorer/analyst Paras Yadav. Keep following Crickxo as the second game of the day between Akcel United Brussels and JB Bruges is set to start soon. Until then, cheers.
That's it from our live coverage of this game. This is Mohammad Anab signing off on behalf of my co-commentator Soumarya Dutta and our scorer/analyst Paras Yadav. Keep following Crickxo as the second game of the day between Akcel United Brussels and JB Bruges is set to start soon. Until then, cheers.