ABU DHABI: Muhammad Uzair Khan struck a swashbuckling half-century before bowlers kept Abu Dhabi batters at bay to script a close victory for the visitors over the boundary count in the 17th match of the ongoing Emirates D10 League.
Sharjah piled on a massive total of 121/6 despite a poor start as the visitors were reeling at 59/6 in the seventh after opting to bat first.
Following the debacle, Muhammad Uzair Khan partnered strongly with Muhammad Zahid Ali and took Sharajah to a commendable total courtesy of an unbeaten 62-run partnership.
Uzair Khan remained the core aggressor of the match-defining stand as he took the hosts’ bowlers to the cleaners, smashing three boundaries and six sixes on his way to a quickfire 51 off just 15 deliveries.
Zahid Ali, on the other hand, stood firm on the other hand and remained unbeaten with his 10-ball 11, featuring two boundaries.
Sharjah’s innings featured a total of 23 boundaries with Uzair Khan leading the charge.
Zeeshan Ali Jnr led Abu Dhabi’s bowling attack with 2/29 while Raja Akifullah Khan, Muhammad Mohsin, Muhammad Zubair Khan and Irshad Hussain picked up a wicket apiece.
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Set to chase 122, Abu Dhabi also accumulated 121 but for the loss of only two wickets and yet ended up on the losing side.
Abu Dhabi’s openers – Mohammad Kamran Atta (5) and Naik Muhammad (19) – struggled against Sharjah bowlers and failed to provide a strong start to their side in the run chase.
Ali Abid then took charge of Abu Dhabi’s pursuit and kept his side in the hunt with a sensational half-century.
He top-scored for the hosts with a 33-ball 60, which featured six boundaries and two sixes but failed to steer his side past Sharjah as both sides settled on the same score.
In response to Sharjah’s 23, Abu Dhabi’s innings featured only 16 boundaries despite Ali Abid’s eight.
Falling short in the boundary count despite ending up head-to-head on the scoreboard, Abu Dhabi succumbed to their second defeat of the ongoing Emirates D10 League.
The close victory lifted Sharjah to the fifth spot in the Emirates D10 League points table while Abu Dhabi remained the second.
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