Global T20 Canada: Surrey Jaguars seal final berth with convincing victory

The playoff stages of the Global T20 Canada saw the Surrey Jaguars register a comprehensive 38-run victory over the Vancouver Knights in Qualifier 1 to find themselves in the final.

Their victory was enabled by the sensational bowling performances of Junaid Siddique (4/22), Ruben Trumpelmann (2/26) and Karthik Meiyappan (2/24). The second encounter of the day saw the Montreal Tigers assert a dominant victory over the Brampton Wolves, winning by 9 wickets (with 34 balls remaining) in the Eliminator Chris Lynn played a stellar knock to ensure the victory for the Tigers. With the day’s results, the Surrey Jaguars have made their way to the final, while Vancouver Knights take on the Brampton Wolves for a place in the finals.

The Jaguars were asked to set a target by the Vancouver Knights. Both openers, Mohammad Haris (20) and Jatinder Singh (15) got starts but failed to make it count. At the end of the powerplay, the Jaguars were placed at 45/2. Pargat Singh (2) ran himself out soon after, while Litton Das (16) also departed after a promising start. Skipper Iftikhar Ahmed (36) and Ayaan Khan (29) put together a partnership, but both batters were scalped in pursuit of a higher run rate. Following their demise, their tail struggled to make an impact. Junaid Siddique (4/22) was the standout bowler for the Knights, restricting the Jaguars to 139/9.

The Knights’ response fell apart early on. At the end of the powerplay, the Knights were struggling at 31/4 with the early dismissals of Rayyan Pathan (4), Mohammad Rizwan (4), Rassie Van Der Dussen (6) and Harsh Thaker (4). Following this, Najibullah Zadran (15) and Fabian Allen (27) were a glimmer of hope but departed soon enough. Expectedly the tail struggled to make a significant contribution despite Trumpelmann’s (11) knock and were bundled out for 101. The Surrey Jaguars made their way to the finals with a dominant victory of 38 runs.

The second match of the day saw the Brampton Wolves start solidly. At the end of the powerplay, there were placed at 34/1 with the loss of Usman Khan (11). Aaron Johnson (31) played a fine knock at the top of the innings before he was scalped by Ayaan Khan. Mark Chapman (11) and Colin de Grandhomme (20) failed to convert their starts and the innings eventually collapsed. The Wolves finished at a low total of 104/10. Matthew Forde proved lethal with figures of 4/16.

In response, the Tigers made a quick meal of their target. Openers Chris Lynn (63*) and M. Waseem (23) registered a 72-run partnership. Chris Lynn was in fine form dispatching ten boundaries. Srimantha Wijeyeratne joined Chris Lynn to get the Tigers home with ease, winning by 9 wickets (with 34 balls remaining).