Kollam stun Kannur; Trivandrum clinch a thriller

New team Phoenix Medicine Kollam Kernels cause one of the biggest upsets in KPL Dubai season two by thrashing defending champions Dunes Cuisine Kannur Veerans by seven wickets at the ICC Global Cricket Academy Grounds on Sunday night.

In another match, DCB Kings XI Trivandrum Royals defeated Global Distribution Malappuram Knights by two wickets.

Chasing a target of 149, Kollam cruised to victory with 23 balls to spare in the Twenty20 tournament being held under the auspices of the Dubai Cricket Council.

Hafiz Khalim was the star as his rapid-fire 83 off just 48 balls powered his team to an emphatic victory. He smashed eight gigantic sixes and four boundaries in his entertaining knock. Rohan Mustafa remained not out on a run a ball 29.

Earlier, batting first, Kannur made a decent 148 for 5 in their 20 overs. Amjad Javed was the top scorer, hitting 37 from 21 balls with the help of two fours and two sixes.

UAE players Arshad Ali and Saqib Ali chipped in with useful contributions. Arshad cracked five fours in his 22-ball 28, while Saqib scored a sedate 15 off 20.

Naeemuddin, who remained not out, gave the innings some momentum by smashing a quick-fire 27 from just 11 balls, including two fours and one six. Vikrant Shetty hit two fours in his 32-ball 27.

Kalim was very impressive in bowling as well as he restricted the scoring chances of Kannur effectively.

He gave away only 15 runs in his four overs and picked up one wicket as well.

Mustafa proved a bit expensive, going for 45 runs from his four overs, but he bagged one wicket.
Mohammed Qasim took one wicket for 12 runs from his two overs.

Kollam lost their openers Mohammed Qasim (15) and Zeeshan Jamil (8) quite early when they began the run chase. But the arrival of Khalim changed the equation quite dramatically and shifted the momentum decisively in favour of Kollam.

He got excellent support from Mustafa, who played a composed 28 off 29 balls. By the time Khalim left the crease, the match was virtually over.

Saqlin Haider then gave company to Mustafa and helped guide the team to an emphatic victory.

Captain CTK Mashood was impressive in his bowling, picking up one wicket for 23 from four overs.

Amjad Javed went for an expensive 36 off three overs, but he too bagged one wicket. Saqib Ali went for 26 from his three overs, while Arshad Ali's two overs cost 33 runs.

Meanwhile, the match between Trivandrum and Malappuram produced some thrilling moments before DCB won  by two wickets.

Zayed Shah produced an inspired all-round performance to power Trivandrum. After picking up two wickets, Shah smashed a rapid-fire 43 from just 16 balls to hand victory to his team.

Malappuram made 170 all out in 19.5 overs thanks to a half-century from Aamir and good contributions from Faizan (33) and Andria (26).

Trivandrum opener Sujit was in brilliant form as he scored 56 off 46, including eight hits to the fence. Shashikant fell early, but Rahman gave good company to Sujit. After the fall of Samiullah and Santosh, Shah tilted the fortunes of the game with his powerful hitting.