Sharjan warriorz

Dubai International Stadium: The Desert Vipers got back to winning ways in Season 3 of ILT20 Season 3 as they put up a scintillating performance to outclass the Sharjah Warriorz and clinch a massive 10-wicket victory at the Dubai International Stadium here on Wednesday. The Desert Vipers rode on Fakhar Zaman’s unbeaten 71 and Mohammad Amir’s four-wicket haul to cruise to an emphatic win which consolidated their position atop the standings.

The Desert Vipers wasted no time in their chase as Alex Hales got them off to a flyer with a flurry of boundaries. He clobbered Tim Southee for three fours and then smashed Adam Milne for a maximum as the side raced to 20/0 inside the first two overs. Zaman joined in on the action with some clean hitting as he went after Bangladeshi pacer Junaid Siddique in his first over. He went across the stump and cut him away for a boundary and then struck a beautiful pull shot for four more.

Zaman was in his groove and seemed to have a simple target - to not let the bowlers settle in. He went after Ashton Agar, hitting him for a massive six with a massive slog sweep. The Pakistani batter darted down the track for the next delivery and hit it straight past the bowler as the Desert Vipers put up 47 runs after five overs. At the same stage in the first innings, the Sharjah Warriorz were 18/4. The gulf in batting was evident as the required run rate dipped below three runs an over and the Desert Vipers’ batsmen made merry in the middle. Hales was happy to play the supporting role while Zaman fired on all cylinders.