Paul Walter produced a second successive Player of the Match performance as Arabian Aces crushed Emirates Eagles by 10 wickets in the Abu Dhabi T10 at the Zayed Cricket Stadium on Monday, chasing 109 without losing a wicket.
Walter smashed an unbeaten 82 from 29 balls, with five fours and nine sixes, and shared an unbroken 110-run opening stand with Tom Kohler-Cadmore, who made 26 not out from 12 balls. The Aces reached 110 without loss in just 6.5 overs, at 16.1 runs per over, with 19 balls to spare.
The Aces had won the toss and chosen to bowl, and the Eagles never quite got going. Kyle Mayers top-scored with 56 from 29 balls, with four fours and four sixes, but the rest of the batting faded around him: Alex Hales made 18 from 11 balls, Rovman Powell 7 from 6 and Chris Green 1 from 2 as the Eagles closed on 108 for 5. Alzarri Joseph struck twice, Richard Gleeson removed Mayers, caught by Andre Russell, and Russell trapped Powell leg before. Walter himself bowled one over for 14 without a wicket.
Mayers alone made more than half of the Eagles’ total, and no other batter passed 20. The Aces’ reply was just as clean: only two extras were conceded in the whole chase, and the target was reached with 19 balls still in hand.
It was Walter’s second match-winning knock in as many days. On Sunday he had made an unbeaten 62 from 26 balls as the Aces beat Royal Desert Champions by nine wickets, and he has now scored 144 runs in the tournament without being dismissed. His two innings have been built on clean six-hitting: five sixes in the 62 not out, and nine more in Monday’s 82 not out, struck at 282.76. Kohler-Cadmore, meanwhile, has been the ideal partner at the other end, his unbeaten 26 coming at 216.67.
The win lifts the Aces to two victories from three matches, after they had opened the tournament with a 51-run defeat to United Tigers on Friday. The Eagles, who beat Royal Desert Champions by 16 runs in their opener before losing to Yas Lions by six wickets on Sunday, have one win from three and will need a quick response with the group stage moving fast.
The night’s second match, United Tigers against Royal Desert Champions, began at 9.30pm IST. The Tigers, unbeaten in two games, sit at the top of the table, while the Champions are still searching for their first win after two defeats.
Related:
- Paul Walter’s Unbeaten 62 Powers Arabian Aces to Nine-Wicket Win Over Royal Desert Champions — https://t20star.com/paul-walters-unbeaten-62-powers-arabian-aces-to-nine-wicket-win-over-royal-desert-champions/
- Shanaka’s Six-Six 60 and Omarzai’s Second Straight Player-of-the-Match Show Power Yas Lions and United Tigers to T10 Wins — https://t20star.com/shanakas-six-six-60-and-omarzais-second-straight-player-of-the-match-show-power-yas-lions-and-united-tigers-to-t10-wins/
