This was it from the fixture between Northern Warriors and Vista Riders. Vista Riders comfortably won the match by 5 wickets and 4 balls to spare, with the help of captain Faf du Plessis. That's it from our side, this is Utsav Chandak, signing off alongside, Ashok Dayma & Hiren Kumar. For all the cricket updates stay connected with the CREX app.
Faf du Plessis (Player of the Match & Vista Riders Captain):"It was a nice win for us. It was nice to bat on and attack the bowlers on this surface. We got some nice options with the ball and guys bowled very well today.
It was nice coming here in Abu Dhabi. We have a off day tomorrow and it was nice to get the win. It is easy on the body. I train hard on my body. Thank you."
Player of the Match - Faf du Plessis
Power Hitter of the Match - Faf du Plessis
Play of the Match - Andrew Tye
11:24 PM IST, 9:54 PM Local Time: Faf du Plessis' unbeaten 53 off 25 sees his team home with a win against Northern Warriors by 5 wickets and 4 balls to spare.
Earlier in the evening, Faf du Plessis, captain of Vista Riders, won the toss and opted to bowl first. Northern Warriors failed to get going as the openers had a rough start. Hazratullah Zazai got dismissed early on and Johnson Charles found it difficult to find the middle of the bat.
Johnson Charles slowly found himself back after playing release shots going all around the park. He finally ended up at 44 runs off 30 balls, with 2 fours and 4 sixes in it. Thisara Perera and Azmatullah Omarzai, gave the side a strong finish. With Perera adding 15 runs in 6 balls, with 2 sixes off his very first balls and Omarzai, scoring 16 runs off just 5 balls, with 2 back to back sixes to end the innings. Exceptional bowling from Andrew Tye, Awais Ahmed and Dhananjaya Lakshan was countered by the other two bowlers ending up being expensive.
The target on the board was 113 in 60 balls. Openers, Faf du Plessis and Unmukt Chand. Faf du Plessis gave a marvelous start to the Riders, taking on Trent Boult in the very first over, where he scored 3 fours and a six, notching up 18 runs. Unmukt Chand was a strong support from the other end, as they powered through the Warrior's bowling unit.
The openers made light work of the run chase, as they were cruising through the overs, until Unmukt Chand was out caught behind off the bowling of Taskin Ahmed. Chand added 19 runs off 8 balls, with 4 fours in it.
Wickets kept falling from the other end, as Faf continued to hammer the bowlers, never letting pressure get to the other batters. Tabraiz Shamsi picked 2 wickets in his 2 overs, giving away 23 runs.
Faf du Plessis stood firm on one end, seeing his side home. He added 53 runs off 25 balls, with 6 fours and 2 sixes in it, to comfortably get the 2 points in the bag for the Vista Riders. This win has taken the Vista Riders to the second position, and handed them a Q beside their name.