ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates, CMC – Rovman Powell smashed an unbeaten half-century as Northern Warriors extended their winning run with a three-run victory over Kieron Pollard’s Deccan Gladiators in the Abu Dhabi T10 League here yesterday.
Fresh from West Indies’ one-day whitewash in Bangladesh last week, Powell hit 51 not out off 23 balls to lead Warriors to 143 for four batting first.
In reply, Pollard failed with nine as Gladiators came up short at 140 for six off their allocated 10 overs.
While the result meant the fourth win in five matches for Warriors, it extended Gladiators wretched losing streak to four defeats in five outings.
Sent in, Warriors lost West Indies white ball opener Brandon King to the third ball of the innings without scoring but his in-form international teammate, Nicholas Pooran, arrived to stroke 29 from 16 balls in a 46-run, second wicket stand with Waseem Muhammad (26).
When Muhammad fell in the third over after striking three fours and two sixes, Pooran joined Powell in a furrther 37-run, third wicket stand to keep the innings alive.
The left-handed Pooran struck one four and three sixes while Powell belted four fours and sixes.
Pooran eventually holed out to fine leg in the sixth over but Powell put on 51 for the fourth wicket with fellow Jamaica and West Indies teammate, Fabian Allen, whose 22 came from 12 balls and included a four and two sixes.
Allen, a lower order who bowls left-arm spin, opted out of the recent tour of Bangladesh due to “personal reasons”.
Facing an asking rate of a shade over 14, Gladiators lost West Indies all-rounder Sunil Narine for a first-ball “duck” off the fourth ball of the run chase before Azam Khan (54) and Mohammad Shahzad (17) put the innings back on course in a 72-run, second wicket partnership.
Allen broke the stand when he removed both in his only over – the sixth of the innings – and Pollard was then one of four wickets which tumbled for nine runs, caught by Allen at deep mid-wicket in the seventh over.
Anwar Ali (35 not out) added 31 for the sixth wicket with Sharafuddin Ashraf (13) and 23 in an unbroken seventh wicket stand Zeeshan Zameer (2) but the 24 runs needed from the last over proved a mountain too high to climb.
