Deccan Gladiators 110 for 2 (Kohler-Cadmore 56*, Pooran 28) beat Morrisville Samp Army 104 for 7 (Du Plessis 34, Gous 21, Gleeson 2-16) by eight wickets
Tom Kohler-Cadmore plundered an unbeaten 21-ball 56 while Nicholas Pooran smashed 28 off just ten to hand Deccan Gladiators their second Abu Dhabi T10 title in three years with an eight-wicket win over Morrisville Samp Army in the final.
Electing to field, Gladiators ensured Samp Army were not allowed to get away at any stage. Maheesh Theekshana struck first sending back Sharjeel Khan for 5 before Charith Asalanka was run out. Andries Gous (21 off nine) and Faf du Plessis (34 off 23) added a 37-run stand in 16 balls for the third wicket to take the game forward.
Gladiators, however, stormed back to pick up four wickets for six runs in 11 balls to restrict Samp Army. Karim Janat's unbeaten eight-ball 16 took Samp Army to 104 for 7, an under-par score considering the format. Richard Gleeson was the most effective bowler for Gladiators, picking up 2 for 16 in his two overs.
In reply, Kohler-Cadmore wasted no time in hitting his stride. He smashed Rohan Mustafa for four successive fours in the opening over to set up the chase. Pooran then got into the act smashing Amir Hamza for a six before laying into Imad Wasim for two sixes and a four in the third over. It took all of 2.4 overs for Gladiators to reach the 50-mark.
Isuru Udana gave Samp Army some relief by removing Pooran, but Rilee Rossouw smashed three fours off his first four deliveries to wrest back all the momentum. Kohler-Cadmore then smoked Qais Ahmed for three sixes and a four in the fifth over, which went for 25, and Gladiators were almost home.
Kohler-Cadmore recorded his half-century off 17 balls before Hamza removed Rossouw for 12, and Jos Buttler finished things off with a six off Qais. It took Gladiators all of 6.5 overs to overhaul their target of 105. Kohler-Cadmore finished the tournament as the leading run-getter with 278 runs in nine innings at a strike rate of 198.57, with three fifties.
