The knockout cricket begins in the ILT20 2025 season on Thursday when the Eliminator is played out in Abu Dhabi with seasons on the line as the MI Emirates look to keep their title defence alive when they take on the Sharjah Warriorz.
The Warriorz have technically already played knockout cricket in this tournament having had to win their final regular season game. Emirates haven’t had that pressure but did finish higher in the standings so this one is intriguingly poised.
MI Emirates
For much of the season, the MI Emirates would probably have been expecting to have played in Qualifier 1 on Wednesday rather than this match but the Dubai Capitals came from the clouds to pip them to second spot and force the champions into playing a knockout match slightly earlier than they would have wanted. Emirates won’t need reminding of the fact that it was a defeat to this very opponent in their final group match which condemned them into this game.
The big problem that Emirates have had is when they haven’t been able to take wickets with the new ball they have really struggled. They haven’t really caught fire as a complete batting unit throughout the competition and so when the bowlers struggle in the powerplay it puts a lot of pressure on the batters to get it right and one or two just aren’t quite showing the form that the MI Emirates would like. When you add in the expectation of a powerhouse outfit defending the title it is easy to see how cracks could appear.
Sharjah Warriorz
The Sharjah Warriorz can’t see this match as a free hit because there is a title at stake and the chance to play for a spot in the final up for grabs here but the fact that they only really looked like making the postseason once they went into their last match means that they can play with a little bit of freedom because this is a bonus now. They won their last three matches to qualify so they are in decent form and they have had that comfort of playing do or die cricket and still being around to tell the tale.
The Warriorz have really come alive with the bat in the last week or so of the competition and as a result of that they have chased down three totals with plenty of wickets in hand which will give them a lot of confidence coming in here. Those chases have been set up by the bowlers coming to the party and the arrival of the Australian pair of Adam Zampa and Ashton Agar has made a real difference, especially with these wickets really starting to tire.
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Key Players
Tom Banton is the second highest run scorer in the competition and the one MI Emirates batter who is in seriously good form. The champions could do with another decent innings from their talismanic batter here.
Tom Kohler-Cadmore might be keeping more established opening batters out of the role they would want to play in this tournament but his 91 not out off 52 balls in the last game against MI Emirates to send the Sharjah Warriorz through was important and his team will be looking for more of the same here.
Betting
I highlighted the form of Tom Banton the last time these two played over the weekend and he doubled down on what I said with another excellent innings of 84* on this very ground against this same opponent and so there is no reason to think he won’t go well again here. He has been giving himself a lot longer to get in before he has exploded and that might well see him cover his run line again, which bizarrely has remained the same at 19.5 for this encounter.
That looks low anyway for a player in his form but when you consider that his last three innings on this ground have been 56, 105 and that 84* when these two met over the weekend, then that line looks even more attainable. Banton also scored 102* against the Warriorz in the first meeting this season so in total he has 186 runs against them in two innings without being dismissed. I’ve got to think he can get to 20 again here.
Tips
Back T.Banton – Over 19.5 runs for a 3/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
