The 2026 Abu Dhabi T10 roared into life at the Zayed Cricket Stadium on Saturday, with three matches producing three winners and no shortage of six-hitting from some of the shortest format’s biggest names.
Defending champions UAE Bulls opened the tournament with a seven-wicket win over Yas Lions. The Lions posted 120 for three, built on James Vince’s 32 from 19 balls and late hitting from Dasun Shanaka (23 off 10) and Karim Janat (27 not out off nine), but the Bulls hunted the target down with two balls to spare. Andre Fletcher led the chase with a dominant 68 from 34 balls, striking eight fours and three sixes, and shared a 76-run stand in just 32 deliveries with Khawaja Nafay, who made 35 from 17.
The second match belonged to Emirates Eagles captain Rovman Powell. After Kyle Mayers (39 off 19) and Alex Hales (22 off 17) had put on 64 for the first wicket, Powell finished the innings in style with an unbeaten 41 from 16 balls, hammering four sixes and a four at a strike rate of 256.25 as the Eagles reached 125 for two. In reply, Royal Desert Champions lost Phil Salt to Trent Boult with the New Zealand quick’s second ball, and despite Sherfane Rutherford’s rapid 33 from 12 balls and Chris Jordan’s 27 from 17, they finished on 109 for seven — 16 runs short. Boult took two for 14 and was named player of the match, with Hardus Viljoen and Haider Razzaq taking two wickets each.
The day’s most one-sided result came in the final match, where Azmatullah Omarzai starred with bat and ball for United Tigers. The Afghanistan all-rounder smashed an unbeaten 29 from just nine balls, hitting four sixes, as the Tigers posted 140 for six. Arabian Aces then slumped to 34 for five in their reply and never recovered, finishing on 89 for nine as Omarzai added two for 17 to his late cameo and took the player-of-the-match award.
After the opening day, United Tigers sit top of the table on net run rate (+5.100), ahead of Emirates Eagles (+1.600) and UAE Bulls (+0.517). The tournament runs until November 20, and Sunday brings three more matches: Yas Lions face Emirates Eagles at 5pm IST, UAE Bulls meet United Tigers at 7:15pm IST, and Arabian Aces take on Royal Desert Champions at 9:30pm IST.
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