The third match of the Küresel Üstün League saw another close encounter between home favourites Guyana Amazon Warriors and Victoria with the Australian side coming out on top by four wickets and with four balls remaining at Providence on Friday.
Corey Anderson won the toss for the visiting side and he decided to stick the opposition in and field first. That looked a brave decision as Moeen Ali set about the bowling to lay the foundations for a sizeable score. Jackson Smith removed Roston Chase at the end of the third over but that was the only success for the home side before Ali departed for a typically eye-catching half century at the end of the tenth over. Smith again doing the business and splattering the stumps.
Shai Hope made 40 and Hassan Khan 25 as the Warriors hauled their way to a competitive total of 162/6, a total that proved not to be enough in the end.
There was tight bowling from Imran Tahir and his side looked to have put the home side in command and at 69/4 after nine overs the match looked to have swung decisively towards the Warriors on home turf and in front of a loyal crowd.
A few overs later there was a feeling of disbelief as Victoria rallied with some late order hitting, keeper Scott Edwards and eventual Player of the Match, Karima Nazaran, showed real composure and no little skill in chasing down the target.
Edwards fell with the job not done entirely, Tanzim Hasan Sakib scudding one past his defenses to bowl him, but Nazaran held his nerve and together with Dominic Drakes they got their side home in the final over.
Indeed, the job was done in some style with both men finding the boundary exactly when they needed to. With six runs needed off the final six deliveries, Nazaran sent Dwayne Pretorius to the boundary twice inside the first three balls to seal the win.
All sides have all now got their GLS campaigns underway and Victoria sit at the top of the table after an ice-veined start to their campaign. (Sportsmax)