Abu Dhabi T10: Eoin Morgan leads Delhi Bulls from the front in win

His 75-run stand with Angelo Mathews took the Bulls over the line

Eoin Morgan playing a shot during the Abu Dhabi T10 Cricket match between Deccan Gladiators v Delhi Bulls held at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Pawan Singh/The National.

Eoin Morgan led from the front to guide Delhi Bulls to victory over Deccan Gladiators by nine wickets in match-2 of the Abu Dhabi T10 at the Zayed Cricket stadium on Friday.

The England World T20 Cup winning captain blasted 57 not out from 27 balls and shared a 75-run stand with Angelo Mathews (22) to get his team over the line with three balls to spare.

“I thought it was a tough chase,” Morgan said after the Gladiators posted 102 for one after being put in

“I’m enjoying my cricket at the moment. I’ve just come in from New Zealand, which was a successful series.

“Confidence is quite high and being a very experienced player. When confidence is high, you need to make the most of it. Hopefully, I can continue to do it.”

The Gladiators racked up 102 for one, with Shane Watson paving the way with a well-compiled 57 from 31 balls.

The Australian struck five fours and a couple of sixes, and shared 85 with Anton Devcich (28) after losing Mohammed Shahzad (11) in the second over to Dushmantha Sameera.

“The wicket was a bit two-paced,” Morgan added. Devcich and Watson played really well and they seemed to get going and find their timing.

“Definitely, Angelo just spoke about it when we were walking off. You still have more time than you think.

“And that’s a huge thing, a psychological thing that everybody thinks that you are running out of time constantly even on a slow wicket. It shows that you can catch up if you do get a partnership going.

“I think ultimately it comes down to execution. In the first two games, there was a clear advantage.

“Maybe a small percentage of advantage when chasing and the wicket remained the same throughout and it depends on how u hold the nerve and execute well it does not really matter.”

Watson conceded they were 10-15 runs short at the end but it was still a good outing for them.

“We could have done a few things better but still it was a good start with just two to three days of preparation,” the Australian said.

“It would have been nice to get another 10 or 15 more but they also bowled well towards the end.

“In Abu Dhabi, the conditions are different to Sharjah (when it was played last year). The ground here is bigger. It’s hard to know how big a total you need but it’s not a question of chasing any total in 10 overs.”

The Afghan left arm spinner Zahir Khan bamboozled the opposition by grabbing three wickets in two overs to leave the Bulls in a bit of a spot at 3 for 28 in three overs.

However, Morgan and Mathews had other ideas as they went about their business to complete a successful chase for the Bulls.