Uthappa blitz in vain as Vince makes it two in two for Giants

Robin Uthappa’s blistering 79 went in vain as Dubai Capitals lost to Gulf Giants in their ILT20 fixture in Dubai on Monday (January 16). Uthappa’s knock helped DC post a strong 182 on the board but an excellent century stand between James Vince and Gerhard Erasmus helped Giants ease home with an over to spare.

Uthappa got going in the second over of the game by taking on Sanchit Sharma for a four and a six over long on before fetching 21 runs off the same bowler in his next over to race to 41. At that point in time, Joe Root at the other end had made only 5. Chris Jordan was then welcomed to the bowling crease with three fours as the veteran Indian batter raised a fifty off just 26 deliveries.

Root, who was pretty much a mute spectator all along, attempted a risky run and was caught short by a direct-hit from Vince. That wicket proved to be a blessing in disguise as Rovman Powell came out and smashed two sixes off the next six balls. At the halfway mark, DC had 96 on the board and looked on course to getting closer to 200. However, Uthappa’s dismissal changed the equation slightly. Powell made 38 and Sikandar Raza chipped in with an unbeaten 30 but Ravi Bopara alongside the Sri Lankan trio of Dasun Shanaka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Isuru Udana registered single-digit scores as the flurry of wickets ensured the batting side finished with just over 182.

Even though Rehman Ahmed gave his side a stunning start in the chase, Giants were on the backfoot pretty soon when Mujeeb Ur Rahman got rid of Rehman and Ollie Pope in the same over. With the asking rate mounting, Giants needed someone to take the initiative to bring the rate down and Erasmus stepped up with successive sixes off Shanaka.

Vince then picked Mujeeb for a six and a four to bring up fifty for the second time in two games in the tournament before taking on Raza for another big one over deep extra cover. Udana, who made a good start with the ball, then conceded four boundaries in a single over to Erasmus as the century stand helped Giants take complete control. Erasmus added two fours to his tally while bringing up his fifty and even though he couldn’t stay until the end, Vince got the job done and remained unbeaten on 83 until the end.

Brief scores: Dubai Capitals182/8 in 20 overs (Robin Uthappa 79, Rovman Powell 38; Rehan Ahmed 3/28) lost to Gulf Giants 183/4 in 19 overs (James Vince 83*, Gerhard Erasmus 52; Mujeeb Ur Rahman 2/36) by six wickets