Nabi, Allen and batters help Hobart Hurricanes blow Dubai Capitals away

BBL champions Hobart Hurricanes started their GSL 2025 campaign with a thumping win over ILT20 winners Dubai Capitals in Providence. Their comfortable seven-wicket win was set up by the 78-run second-wicket stand between Macalister Wright (50) and the captain Ben McDermott (48). Hurricanes chased the target down with 18 balls to spare.

That Hurricanes needed only 142 to win, though, was courtesy their spin bowlers Fabian Allen and Mohammad Nabi. The two finished with identical figures of 4-0-21-3.

McDermott introduced Nabi inside the powerplay of the first innings, and he dismissed Capitals openers Rohan Mustafa and Sediqullah Atal in the third and fifth overs respectively. Allen then got rid of Niroshan Dickwella to leave Capitals three down in six overs.

Nabi then dismissed Shakib Al Hasan, caught behind for seven, before Allen took the wicket of Kadeem Alleyne. From 82 for 5, a mini recovery ensued with Capitals captain Gulbadin Naib top-scoring with a 27-ball 31. However, they did not have enough firepower for a big finish.

Bhanuka Rajapaksa started Hurricanes' chase with a six and two fours in his first five balls to move to 15. He was out on his sixth delivery to Mustafa, but that did not stop the Hurricanes' run scoring. McDermott was the aggressor with five fours and three sixes in his 24-ball 48 while Wright offered support with five fours of his own. Hurricanes scoring rate hovered around ten as the second-wicket partnership blossomed, and when Qais Ahmed broke the partnership, Hurricanes needed only 40 more runs in 9.4 overs.

Wright brought up his half-century in 47 balls in the 16th over but could not see the game off, falling to Aryaman Varma. Jake Doran and Nikhil Choudhary finished the chase and took Hurricanes to the top of the GSL 2025 points table.