MI Emirates vs DC, 2nd Match at Dubai, ILT20, Jan 20 2024 - Ball by Ball Commentary

10:15pm Thanks for tuning in, everyone. Hope you enjoyed our coverage as much as we loved bringing it to you. We will be back with more ILT20 action tomorrow, with a double-header lined up. Until then, this is goodbye from me (Shashwat), Ranjith and everyone else at ESPNcricinfo. Take care!

David Warner, Dubai Capitals captain: I really enjoy leadership. Great to have a nice, enthusiastic bunch. Helps when you have that much energy. (On the advice he seeks) I throw it open to everyone, and am open to ideas across the 20 overs. (On the spinners he used in the middle overs) The toss-up was between Sikandar and Roelof. Sikandar bowled extremely well, mixed it up nicely and fortunately one ball turned. I have had a lot of good battles against Boult. That was the first time I have seen the ball swing a lot here. Something for me to adjust as well in the next game. (On Gurbaz and Fraser-McGurk) Two guys with clear minds and two guys at the peak of their game right now.

Nicholas Pooran, MI Emirates captain: (On what went wrong after the start) We kept losing wickets. When Fletcher got out, it was our job to bat sensibly for the next few overs. They bowled well. We got to 160 and felt we had a chance but it was not enough. (On his wicket) That is just a good ball, I will accept it and move on. (On their score) We fell short by about 30-40 runs. Fraser and Gurbaz played well. The dew came in as well, and that was the end of the game, we had no answers.

Sikandar Raza, Player of the Match: They were running away in the powerplay. But we knew what we had in the armoury. Some of those wickets were pretty lucky (smiles). (On the plan to Pooran) Nicky has had a lot of success and he is a world-class cricketer. That was one of the plans we set for him. On any other day, it could have been his day. That ball came out pretty well. I try to make sure the batter is not set. When I was training yesterday, I knew the lengths would have to be different here (from Sri Lanka). I said to the coaches that I did not know what was coming out of my hands, so good luck to the batters. (On what kept him going) Faith gave me peace. That took care of all the difficult times I or any person has to go through.

9:53pm An emphatic statement by the Capitals, right at the start of the tournament. They were rocked early, with Boult dismissing Warner. Thereafter, though, it was the Gurbaz-JFM show. Their partnership ransacked 114 runs off just 51 balls and that knocked the stuffing out of MI Emirates.

Speaking of the MI Emirates, they simply did not have enough runs to play with. Their bowling was also not very tidy, and they bowled both sides of the wicket. A bad day at the office to begin their campaign, and they will need to find a way to bounce back tomorrow.

David to bowl what should be the last over (or ball) of this match

And we will have a strategic time-out, with the Capitals needing all of one run because, why not. Not sure if a strategy exists that will take this game to a Super Over from here...

Can Powell finish off this run-chase in this over? Just 3 needed now

Capitals one hit away from a win now. Can Billings finish it off in style?

Hosein to bowl out