New York Strikers 121 for 5 (Gurbaz 56, Qais 2-24) beat Samp Army 80 for 9 (Qais 31*, Holder 22, Hosein 5-6) by 41 runs
Akeal Hosein's sensational 5 for 6 in two overs dismantled Samp Army, as New York Strikers posted a 41-run win in Qualifier 1 on Friday to storm into the Abu Dhabi T10 final.
Defending 121, Strikers' left-arm spinner picked up a hat-trick in the first over of the innings, dismissing Andries Gous, Dewald Brevis and Ibrahim Zadran, to leave Samp Army reeling at 1 for 3. In his second over, Hosein removed the opposition captain Faf du Plessis and also Najibullah Zadran in the space of three balls to further rattle Army. Jason Holder's 22 off 11, and Qais Ahmad's unbeaten 31 off 13 at No. 10 meant Army huffed and puffed to 80 for 9.
Earlier, opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz's blazing 56 off 28 set the tone for Strikers to post a competitive 121 for 5. His knock included four fours and five sixes. In the end, Asif Ali smashed three fours in his unbeaten seven-ball knock of 17 to further lift Strikers.
. Deccan Gladiators 114 for 0 (Pooran 70*, Kohler-Cadmore 43*) beat Bangla Tigers 112 for 6 (Naib 52, Russell 2-21, Thushara 2-22) by ten wickets
A six-hitting show by Nicholas Pooran and Tom Kohler-Cadmore helped Deccan Gladiators eliminate Bangla Tigers.
Chasing 113, Gladiators hardly broke a sweat, and romped home by ten wickets with 20 balls to spare. Pooran finished on 70 not out off just 25 balls, with eight fours and five sixes. Kohler-Cadmore kept him company with a 16-ball 43, and hit four fours and three sixes.
This was after Gulbadin Naib's 26-ball 52 not out propelled Tigers to 112 for 6. Batting at No. 5, Naib hit two sixes and three fours after coming in at 20 for 3 in the third over, but this didn't prove to be enough.
Andre Russell and Nuwan Thushara, meanwhile, returned two wickets apiece.
Deccan Gladiators 117 for 5 (Kohler-Cadmore 36*, Wasim 35, Qais 2-11) beat Samp Army 89 for 6 (Janat 31, Gous 28*, Salamkheil 3-6) by 28 runs
Afghanistan wristspinner Waqar Salamkheil finished with impressive figures of 3 for 6 to stun Samp Army and power Deccan Gladiators into the Abu Dhabi T10 final.
Gladiators, who had already eliminated Bangla Tigers, made 117 for 5 batting first. Pooran, the star of their win in the eliminator, gave the team a blazing start with a nine-ball 26, before Tom Kohler-Cadmore (36*) and Imad Wasim (35) built on that platform with a 57-run stand for the third wicket. While Wasim eventually fell in the eighth over, Kohler-Cadmore remained unbeaten, smashing three fours and two sixes.
Army were rocked early in their chase, slumping to 24 for 5 by the fifth over, as Salamkheil rattled the team's top and middle order with crucial blows. Karim Janat, coming in at No.7, provided some fireworks by blasting 31 off just 14 balls, but once he was dismissed by Andre Russell in the eighth over, Gladiators' win was just a formality.