ABI DHABI, United Arab Emirates, CMC – Shimron Hetmyer produced a match-winning knock as Samp Army chased down a tricky total to beat Rovman Powell’s Northern Warriors by five wickets and secure their spot in the playoffs of the Abu Dhabi T10.
In pursuit of 118 at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium here yesterday, Samp Army reached their target with nine balls to spare, thanks to Hetmyer’s 45 from 18 deliveries.
When Hetmyer’s in-form teammate Johnson Charles fell to the very first delivery of the innings, Samp Army’s chase seemed in danger but the left-handed Hetmyer blasted two fours and five sixes to give his side the advantage.
More importantly, he put on 71 for the second wicket with Karim Janat who belted three sixes in a 12-ball 25.
Hetmyer was one of four wickets to tumble for 11 runs before Chamika Karunaratne struck an eight-ball unbeaten 22 in a 37-run, unbroken fifth wicket partnership with Dwaine Pretorius (17 not out) to get his side over the line.
Earlier, Pretorious (2-22) and Janat (2-21) grabbed two wickets apiece as Warriors, opting to bat first, reached 117 for seven from their 10 overs.
The innings was going nowhere at 22 for four in the third over but Englishman Adam Hose lashed 54 from 25 balls in a 57-run, fifth wicket stand with West Indies batsman Sherfane Rutherford, who struck 30 from 15 balls, to add impetus.
Samp Army finished second on 10 points while Warriors ended sixth on four points to miss out on the playoffs
In the final game of the triple-header, Kieron Pollard’s New York Strikers defeated Brandon King’s Team Abu Dhabi by seven wickets to confirm their spot at the top of the standings on 12 points.
Dwayne Bravo’s Delhi Bulls defeated Carlos Brathwaite’s Chenna Braves by 31 runs in the opener but both teams missed out on the next round.
