Junaid Siddique's impressive five-wicket haul led UAE to restrict Canada in their T20 World Cup match, despite a resilient half-century from Harsh Thaker.
Key Points
- Junaid Siddique achieved a career-best five-wicket haul, taking 5/35 against Canada.
- Harsh Thaker scored a fighting half-century (50 off 41) for Canada in the T20 World Cup match.
- Navneet Dhaliwal contributed 34 runs, forming a crucial partnership with Thaker.
- Canada recovered from an early slump of 38/3 thanks to Thaker and Dhaliwal's partnership.
Senior pacer Junaid Siddique took five wickets to headline a disciplined bowling effort from the United Arab Emirates as they restricted Canada to a below-par 150 for 7 in their T20 World Cup match in New Delhi on Friday.
Siddique, Jawadullah wreck Canada’s top order early
Opting to bat, Canada were jolted early as pacers Siddique (5/35) and Muhammad Jawadullah ripped through the top order inside the first four overs.
Siddique set the tone with a superb opening spell, fetching two wickets before claiming three scalps at the death.
He started by pitching one up around off to lure opener Dilprit Bajwa into an aerial stroke, only for the skipper to mistime it and offer a simple catch.
He then shifted to a fifth-stump line, angling the ball away as opener Yuvraj Samra attempted a pull, gifting a regulation catch to Alishan Sharafu at mid-on.
Jawadullah joined the party, striking with his first delivery, dismissing the dangerous Nicholas Kirton, who edged behind, leaving Canada reeling with their top three back in the dugout inside six overs.
Thaker-Dhaliwal fightback
Harsh Thaker steadied the innings with a 41-ball-50. He briefly wrested back momentum with a four and a six, guiding Canada's recovery alongside Navneet Dhaliwal (34).
He stitched together two vital partnerships -- a 58-run stand with Dhaliwal (34) and a 33-run association with Shreyas Movva (21).
However, Siddique returned in the 18th over to remove Thaker.
In his next over he got rid of Movva with a slower bouncer, before getting rid of Saad Bin Zafar, halting Canada's late push.
Thaker (50 off 41 balls; 2x4, 3x6) and Dhaliwal (34 off 28; 4x4) revived their innings with a 58-run fourth-wicket stand after Canada had slumped to 38/3 inside the powerplay.
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