The Bangla Tigers, led by Shakib Al Hasan, ended their Abu Dhabi T10 campaign on a disappointing note, suffering a hat-trick of losses. Despite showing early promise in the tournament, the Tigers failed to capitalize on their chances and concluded with a crushing 7-wicket defeat against the UP Warriors in their final match.

With their elimination confirmed earlier, the Tigers aimed for a consolation win in their last game but fell short. On the other hand, the UP Warriors strengthened their bid for a top-four spot, finishing the match with 12 balls to spare and keeping their playoff hopes alive, contingent on other results.

Chasing a modest target of 88, the Warriors’ top-order delivered efficiently. While skipper Rahmanullah Gurbaz couldn’t contribute significantly, Avishka Fernando’s 36 off 21 and Andre Fletcher’s 27 off 14 anchored the innings. Najibullah Zadran sealed the victory in style, smashing 19 off just 5 balls with two sixes and a four.

The UP Warriors now sit third on the points table with 8 points, awaiting the outcomes of matches involving teams ranked 4th to 6th.

Batting first, the Bangla Tigers started well, courtesy of their Afghan openers Hazratullah Zazai and Mohammad Shahzad, who put together a 44-run stand. However, their overly cautious approach proved costly. Zazai’s 23-ball 24 and Shahzad’s 17-ball 23 didn’t match the high-strike-rate demands of the T10 format.

Iftikhar Ahmed offered some late fireworks, smashing three sixes in his 27-run cameo, but the Tigers could only manage 87 runs, far below a competitive total on a batting-friendly track.