Today's Edition
Kuumar Shyam (Aletihad)
Asif Khan made the most of a profligate opposition to power his Braves side to a nine-wicket win in the inaugural Developing Tournament final against the Blitzers late on Tuesday night. He missed out on a century but his unbeaten 96 to reach the 115-run target proved to be sensational stuff.
Yet, it was a very doable task to reach the milestone, according to the man of the match. "I have done it before in another match when the target was about 120 and I managed to score a hundred," said Asif, 33, who has been having a prolific 2023 with the bat. "I was eyeing a personal target of a century from the first ball. I told myself that I will have a go as usual in the powerplay, and take it from there."
He had a couple of reprieves, which he put "as par for the course", but he smashed nine fours and six sixes in his 47-ball innings before crossing the finish line.
He would have secretly wished the target was a tad higher – by four runs, atleast – but then his team management also got what they wished for, Asif said.
The ILT20 Development Tournament stars have a shot at playing in DP World ILT20 Season 2💥
— International League T20 (@ILT20Official) October 11, 2023
13 spots up for grabs! 🏏 #DPWorldILT20 #ILT20Development #DevelopmentTournament #UAECricket #CricketTalent pic.twitter.com/mjhr1XTm0Q
"The pitch in the previous games was slower, but this one for the final was rolled hard, and was firm. Overall the whole tournament was difficult for the batters. The outfield was also on the longer side, nearly 90 metres long to the boundary.
"But I wanted to play positive; especially since I am in my preferred position as an opener. I knew, if I keep attacking, things will happen," he said.
Asif's incredible innings helped Braves finish the chase in a mere 12.1 overs. Earlier, the Blitzers were blown away for a meagre 114 in 17.5 overs. Haider Ali bowled a brilliant spell to take four wickets for 11 runs. The left-arm spinner finished with 15 wickets overall.
Asif finished as the highest run-getter in the 18-match tournament. He tallied 383 runs at 76.60 with the help of three half-centuries, at an impressive strike rate of 148.45.
The tournament was aimed at providing a potentially life-changing opportunity to the players with 13 spots for UAE players up for grabs in the second season of the DP World ILT20, the world's second richest cricket league in the world.
The vacant spots will now be filled through a final selection process which will take place later this month. All the ILT20 franchise representatives were in attendance for the final.
Atleast four teams have Asif Khan now in their target sight. Asked to bat in the middle order to maximise his experience by the national team, Asif will travel to Oman and play in the triangular series with Nepal and Hong Kong before preparing for the World Cup qualifiers.
Brief scores:
IlT20 Blitzers 114 all out (Aryan Lakra 25, Zeeshan Ali Mirza 20; Haider Ali 4-11, Raees Ahmed 2-17) lost to ILT20 Braves 117 for 1 (Asif Khan 96 not out)
