Mighty MI Emirates stand between Dubai Capitals and ILT20 title
Written by I Dig Sports
Big picture
IPL team owners sensed an opportunity, and expanded their network last year. Mumbai Indians took a seat in each of SA20, ILT20, WPL and MLC. Not to be left too far behind, Delhi Capitals, too, boarded the flight to South Africa and the UAE, while also spreading their reach in India through WPL.Come Saturday, MI Emirates and Dubai Capitals, both UAE affiliates of the respective franchises, will be meeting in the final of the second edition of the ILT20.
MI Emirates and Capitals have been reinforced with the return of Nicholas Pooran and Rovman Powell respectively. But amid modern players criss-crossing the globe like the snake in that game on the screens of Nokia phones, there is also the departure of Tim David, David Warner, Kusal Perera and Fazalhaq Farooqi that the teams have to deal with because of the clash with international cricket.
So who takes the ILT20 trophy home could be intriguing to watch. Capitals, who are yet to win a tournament across any of their investments, will be itching to get their hands on a silverware while MI's cupboard is already brimming with five IPL titles, and the inaugural WPL and MLC trophies.
Form guide
(Last five matches; most recent first)MI Emirates: WLLWW
Dubai Capitals: WWWWL
In the spotlight
He might have had underwhelming returns with scores of 18, 18 and 1 for West Indies in the T20Is against Australia, but Nicholas Pooran remains a threat. His strike rate of 164 and average of 42 are the highest for any batter to have scored at least 250 runs in this season's ILT20.Probable XIIs
MI Emirates: 1 Muhammad Waseem, 2 Will Smeed, 3 Andre Fletcher, 4 Dan Mousley, 5 Kieron Pollard, 6 Nicholas Pooran (capt, wk), 7 Dwayne Bravo, 8 Jordan Thompson, 9 Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, 10 Waqar Salamkheil, 11 Trent Boult, 12 Muhammad RohidDubai Capitals: 1 Leus de Plooy, 2 Tom Banton, 3 Tom Abell, 4 Haider Ali, 5 Sam Billings (capt, wk), 6 Sikandar Raza, 7 Rovman Powell, 8 Rahul Chopra, 9 Jason Holder, 10 Oliver Stone,11 Scott Kuggeleijn, 12 Zahir Khan
Quotes
"I think a lot of people underestimate franchise cricket. I have been a son of franchise cricket. Yes, cricket is a sport; but it's also a business. Even team owners want to win [It's about] playing in different conditions against different bowlers. It definitely helped me - because at one point in my career, I was on the bench. And the bench is not nice - because when you're on the bench, you are staying in the hotel sometimes. You're watching your team play on the TV. I felt like I wanted to be a part of the XI. I wanted to feel that winning spirit."MI Emirates captain Nicholas Pooran highlights the role of T20 leagues
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