Dubai: MI Emirates captain Kieran Pollard and Desert Vipers pacer Naseem Shah had a heated verbal altercation during the final of the fourth edition of the ILT20 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday.
The incident occurred in the 11th over when Pollard defended a delivery from Naseem and sent the ball straight to the fast bowler.
The Pakistan fast bowler took the ball and smiled at Pollard, who responded aggressively, prompting a verbal exchange between the two players.
Both players moved close during the tussle, with Pollard looking visibly angry as he exchanged words with the right-arm pacer.
The umpires intervened with Viper batsman Jason Roy to break up the clash. Naseem was also seen firing back, much to the chagrin of both the players.
However, Naseem exacted his revenge by dismissing Pollard on the first delivery of the 16th over, who had scored 28 runs off one ball.
Meanwhile, Vipers won their maiden ILT20 title by defeating MI Emirates by 46 runs in the final, thanks to some disciplined bowling led by Naseem Shah and an unbeaten half-century from skipper Sam Curran.
Batting first, the Desert Vipers posted 182-4 in 20 overs thanks to Curran’s exceptional unbeaten 74 off 51 balls with 8 fours and 2 sixes.
Max Holden scored 41 off 32 balls with 2 fours and a six while Faqar Zaman got off to a good start with 20 off 15 balls with 2 fours and a six.
Don Lawrence scored 23 runs off 15 balls with a four and a six.
MI used eight bowlers in reply, with Fazalhaq Farooqi leading the attack claiming 2-33 from his four overs, while Akeal Hosein picked up a wicket.
In reply, Emirates bowled out for 136 runs in 18.3 overs. Shakib Al Hasan top scored 36 off 27 balls with 3 fours.
Captain Pollard added 28 runs off one ball including two fours while opener Muhammad Wasim scored 26 off 13 balls with three fours and a six.
For Vipers, Naseem Shah and David Payne took three wickets each with the bowling. Kuzaima Tanveer and Usman Tariq took 2 wickets each.
Sam Curran-led Desert Vipers made their third ILT20 final appearance in four seasons and finally won the title for the first time.
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