Salman Faris played a stellar role with the ball as Yogi Group earned an eight-wicket win over Interface Transworld to set up a final against Phoenix Medicine in the Al Dhaid Ramadan T20 tournament.
The left-arm spinner finished with figures of 4-9 as Interface Transworld were all out for 75.
In reply, Swapnil Salvi hit an unbeaten 25 as Yogi Group scored the required runs with ease, reaching 81 in just 10.1 overs.
Man-of-the-Match Faris was pleased with his performance and said the pitch played a big part.
“The ball was turning a lot which really suited me," he said. "Their batsmen were unable to read the movement of the ball, and it eventually led to wickets.
“It’s a big moment to achieve (the four-wicket haul) especially in a semi-final match against a strong team.
“As a team we played to our potential. The batting, bowling and fielding was up to scratch and we definitely want to take this confidence forward into the final.”
Interface Transworld made a dreadful start to their innings with 27-3 on the scoreboard early on in their innings and things went from bad to worse, as they lost another two wickets to be placed at 40-5.
Only Bilal Arshad made a meaningful contribution with 19 runs at the top of the order before Faris took charge to run through the middle and lower order as Interface Transworld were bowled out after 15.3 overs.
Claiming the other wickets were Mohammad Rameez (2) while Hasan Ali, Shehzad Manna and Akhter Kuani all took a wicket each.
In reply, with not much pressure chasing a small total, Yogi Group’s in-form opening batsman Salvi made the running with his unbeaten 25.
His 22-ball effort included two boundaries and a six while Manna was quicker in his approach smashing 24 from only 14 deliveries consisting of five boundaries, before being dimissed.
UAE international Swapnil Patil scored a steady 21 off 24 deliveries as Yogi Group reached the target with ease.
In the other semi-final, Phoenix Medicine beat Alubond Tigers by five wickets at Al Dhaid Cricket Village.
Phoenix Medicine owner and captain Adil Mirza, is relishing the opportunity to face Yogi Group.
He said: “It feels great to have made the final as this is a big Ramadan tournament for us.
“During the tournament we played well but in last couple of matches we got our rhythm together and have clicked at the right time. Now things are looking bright for us.
“We really played extremely well and all the players put in a lot of effort in the semi-final against Alubond Tigers as they made it very tough for us.
“Yogi Group are one of the most experienced teams in the UAE, so it will definitely be a difficult match.
“We have some good players and they do as well. So, it will be a close game. Now we are in the final, we want to win the tournament.”
