Sharjah: Danube Lions and United Bank Limited (UBL) of Abu Dhabi will clash in the 42nd Bukhatir League Cricket Tournament 2016 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Thursday.
For Danube, it was a test of their nerves as they snatched a one-wicket win over Multiplex International as UBL got past Alubond Tigers by four wickets in their semi-final clashes.
A superb century from Gulraiz Sadaf helped Danube Lions chase down a target of 280 runs and win with four balls to spare. Multiplex skipper Zeeshan Khan won the toss and chose to bat. Despite the early fall of the first wicket, the pair of Sapandeep Singh and Aklaq Butt put on 135 runs in just over 20 overs. Butt hit 51 runs off 68 with seven boundaries and a six, Singh scored a 57-ball 74 runs with four fours and six sixes during his 57-ball 74.
Danube Lions chase began on a confident note despite the early loss of Asif Iqbal (1). Sadaf shared a 51-run association with Shahzad Manna (34).
The scoring rate slowed down with the loss of a few wickets but Sadaf went on to hit 109 from 120 deliveries with nine boundaries and three sixes. Adnan Mufti hit seven fours in his 54 runs off 42 balls.
Danube Lions needed eight runs to win with just a wicket remaining, when Sami Niazi hit a six to remain unbeaten on nine to guide Danube to target.
In the other semi-final, UBL chased down a target of 270 as Syed Maqsood (45) and Amjad Ali (49) shared a 95-run stand for the first wicket. In-form Mohammad Boota hit a 50 with the help of two boundaries and four sixes.
Winning the toss and batting first, Alubond Tigers amassed an impressive 269 for nine in 50 overs through Rohan Mustafa’s 82-ball 73 runs with eight boundaries and two sixes. He also shared a fine 99-run partnership with Shahid Siddiq (42) for the opening wicket.
Hassan Raza hit a cautious 62 from 90 balls to swell the score before a middle order collapse that destroyed Alubond chances of a bigger score.
