GG VS MIE QUALIFIER 2

Right then, that is it from Qualifier 2 and it is Gulf Giants who topple MI Emirates and make their way to Sunday's grand final. They will take on Desert Vipers in a bid to lift the ILT20 trophy 2023 in its inaugural edition. That game will start on the 12th of February at 7.30 pm IST (2 pm GMT) but you can join us a lot sooner for the build-up. Cheers!

Gulf Giants skipper, James Vince (83* off 56 balls) is the PLAYER OF THE MATCH. Vince says that they got off to a quick start and that took the pressure off but they lost wickets in the middle and the boys did well to bounce back. Adds that the opposition was 10-15 runs short but if they had held on to their catches, they could have restricted them to 10-15 runs less. Says that he is happy to be in the final against Desert Vipers and is looking forward to it.

Kieron Pollard, the captain of MI Emirates, says that they didn't get off to a good start and the Gulf Giants bowled well in the first 10 overs. Feels that they were 10-15 runs. Adds that they could have been a bit tighter with the ball. Mentions that after they way Gulf Giants started in the Powerplay, MI Emirates were always playing catching up. Congratulates the Giants for winning and agrees that after dropping catches, they didn't deserve to be the champion side. Hopes that his team has learnt a lot from this tournament.

The Presentation ceremony...

Earlier in the game, James Vince won the toss and put MI Emirates into bat and this decision worked out pretty well for Gulf Giants. After losing an early wicket, Muhammad Waseem and Lorcan Tucker did fairly well to get MI Emirates back on track but both of them fell in quick succession after which the run rate slowed down. Kieron Pollard took his time and stayed till the end to ensure that his side finished with a flourish. The bowling in general by Gulf Giants was good with David Wiese and Chris Jordan proving to be the most effective. With 168 runs needed to win, James Vince led from the front and remained unbeaten on 83 off 56 balls and took his side into the final.

MI Emirates conjured up a brilliant comeback with the bat only for their opening bowlers to let them down. Neither Trent Boult nor Fazalhaq Farooqi found their mark in the opening overs and the early bowling changes didn't work out either as Rashid Khan was taken for a bit of hammering early on. MI Emirates though kept on fighting and at one time were right in the mix but conceding runs at a haemorrhaging rate at the start cost them dearly. Fazalhaq Farooqi and Rashid Khan did come back strongly to pick up a couple of wickets each but it just wasn't enough.

Gulf Giants lost a bit of momentum heading into the interval but they were able to regain it early on in the chase as openers James Vince and Chris Lynn put on a quickfire 64-run stand off just 36 balls. This set the tone for the rest of the chase and even though the Giants lost wickets on the way, the skipper Vince was able to keep going and made sure that they got over the line. The middle order didn't contribute much but almost every batter that came in was able to get 10-15 quick runs and this made their job easier. The Giants will now look to rest well and gear up for the final.

A brilliantly timed chase from James Vince and Gulf Giants and they have breezed through to the final! The Giants have made a decently-sized target look a bit meagre and have set up a rematch against Desert Vipers on Sunday for the trophy.

FOUR! Vince finishes it off in style! What a knock from the skipper. Fuller in length and outside off, the skipper lofts it cleanly over extra cover and finds the fence. Gulf Giants win by 4 wickets and are in the final!

Chris Jordan is the new man in.

OUT! BOWLED! Trent Boult delivers a leg-stump half-volley, and Carlos Brathwaite clears his front leg to whip it over the leg side but misses. It clips his back leg and crashes into the stumps. Gulf Giants will have to wait.

Yorker around leg, Carlos steps back and forces it out to extra cover.

Angles in a length ball on middle, from 'round the wicket, Vince tickles it through mid-wicket for a single. One shot away from the ticket to the finale.

Short and around leg, Vince swivels to pull but it bounces over his gloves.

Back of a length, following the batter down the leg side, Brathwaite nudges it to fine leg for one.

Angling away outside off, it's pushed through point for a single.