Dubai Capitals captain Sikandar Raza was delighted after his team registered a five-wicket win against Gulf Giants at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai on Thursday in the ongoing ILT20. The Capitals have won their last two games, including a win against table-toppers Desert Vipers.

Meanwhile, after electing to field first, Dubai Capitals were able to restrict Gulf Giants at 153-5. Jordan Cox top-scored with 70 runs but he could not get the support from the other end as the Capitals came up with a collective bowling show.

On the other hand, Shai Hope top-scored with 47 off 39 balls for the Capitals but the home team found themselves struggling at 110-5 after 16.1 overs. However, Dasun Shanaka and Sikandar Raza were able to add the finishing touches. Shanaka scored 34 runs off just 10 balls with the help of three fours and as many sixes to help his team get over the line.

Raza, who also scored a crucial 15-ball 26, said in the post-match presentation, “You got to win all the home games, that’s the formula. The idea is to win one or two on the road. I didn’t think the wicket was as tough as the last game. I thought 153 was below par, I think 165 would have been a tough chase. Shai got 40-odd, he played beautifully. We look forward to doing this doing forward. We are peaking at the right time. We haven’t bowled a lot of extras, no balls, that helps. We want to enjoy the 20 overs when we are on the field.”

James Vince, the Gulf Giants captain, admitted that Dasun Shanaka took the game away from them towards the fag end.

He said after the game, “Shanaka was able to strike it cleanly. Shanaka took it away from us in the last 3 years. Was a much better performance from us. We felt it was a decent score. It was a bit slower and lower. Cox played a vital innings. It’s the key moments. We were short of runs at the top of the order. We know how this competition is.”

Dubai Capitals will next take on Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi on Sunday