The 2021/22 season of the Abu Dhabi T10 league wrapped up on Saturday, with the Deccan Gladiators emerging victorious.
The Gladiators got the better of the Delhi Bulls in the final, securing a thumping 56-run win.
As always, there were a galaxy of stars on show, with the English players, in particular distinguishing themselves. Here is a look at how the English players fared at the tournament.
Deccan Gladiators
Tom Kohler-Cadmore – 288 runs @ 28.8, SR: 200
Kohler-Cadmore tore apart bowling attacks and notched up the highest-ever score in the history of the Abu Dhabi T10 league. He also finished as the sixth leading-run getter at the tournament and scored a 28-ball 59* in the final.
Tom Banton – 180 runs @ 25.71, SR: 183.67
Banton played second-fiddle to Kohler-Cadmore but still enjoyed a strong tournament, finishing as his side’s third-highest run-scorer.
Tom Moores – 138 runs @ 27.6, SR: 191.66
The wicketkeeper batter wasn’t always required with the bat, but when he did he scored freely.
Tymal Mills – 11 wickets @ 11.18, ER: 8.78
The fast bowler roared back from injury and proved why he remains one of the best defensive T20l bowlers in the world, finishing with the fourth best economy rate at the tournament.
Delhi Bulls
Eoin Morgan – 174 runs @ 21.75, SR: 175.75
Morgan came into the tournament on the back of some indifferent form, during the IPL and the T20 World Cup. Here he didn’t offer a statement knock to dispel the doubters, but did play some useful cameos.
Luke Wright – 93 runs @ 23.25, SR: 166.07
The veteran batter didn’t get much time out in the middle – but still had an 18-ball 40* against Northern Warriors in his locker.
Adil Rashid – 11 wickets @ 15.54, ER: 10.36; 42 runs, SR: 150
The leg-spinner finished as the Bulls’ second-highest wicket taker and celebrated a hat-trick against Abu Dhabi.
Team Abu Dhabi
Liam Livingstone – 309 runs @ 25.75, SR: 210.2; 11 wickets @ 22.18, ER: 11.09
Livingstone continued to build his reputation as a short-form cricketer capable of special things with both bat and ball. Leading the Abu Dhabi side, he finished as the fourth-highest run-scorer in the tournament as well as the joint-fourth highest wicket-taker.
Phil Salt – 344 runs @ 31.27, SR: 240.55
Livingstone has hogged the headlines lately and rightly so. However, Salt was just as impressive at the tournament. He regularly blazed away at the top and reminded the cricketing fraternity of the destruction he is capable of causing, finishing as the second highest run-scorer at the tournament and that too at a stunning strike rate.
Jamie Overton – 4 wickets @ 41.5, ER: 11.71; 92 runs @ 15.33, SR: 191.66
His numbers with the ball aren’t special but he enjoyed a couple of special match-winning innings with the bat: an 18-ball 33* against Deccan Gladiators was followed by a five-ball 20 against Delhi Bulls.
Danny Briggs – 8 wickets @ 22.12, ER: 11.8; 28 runs @ 9.33, SR: 133.3
Briggs came in for a bit of tap during the tournament, but still chipped away, finishing as Team Abu Dhabi’s fourth-highest wicket-taker.
Daniel Bell-Drummond – 6 runs @ 2, SR: 75
Bell-Drummond didn’t enjoy a lot of game-time and was unable to set the world alight when he got a chance.
Chris Benjamin – 10 runs @ 2.5, SR: 62.5
Benjamin had four innings to show his worth. Unfortunately for him, he could only muster 10 runs across those innings and was unable to build on a fine summer with Warwickshire and Birmingham Phoenix.
Bangla Tigers
Benny Howell – 9 wickets @ 20.88, ER: 9.02; 72 runs @ 18, SR: 163.63
Building on an impressive season in The Hundred with Birmingham Phoenix, Howell was the second-highest wicket taker (behind James Faulkner) for the Tigers.
Luke Wood – 7 wickets @ 31, ER: 11.32; 9 runs @ 9, SR: 75
The Lancashire seamer proved expensive in his 10 outings, resulting in a quiet tournament.
Luke Fletcher – 6 wickets @ 13, ER: 9.75; 19 runs @ NA, SR: 190
Fletcher played just four matches but held his own during those appearances to return six scalps at a solid average.
Will Jacks – 179 runs @ 25.57, SR: 190.42
Jacks was his usual belligerent self throughout the tournament, scoring at a good clip; his unbeaten knock of 57 was instrumental as the Tigers hunted down the Deccan Gladiators in the group phase.
Tom Hartley – 4 wickets @ 10.75, ER: 8.6
Hartley made just three appearances but showed off the skills that have made him a tidy operator for Lancashire, taking four wickets with his left-arm spin while keeping a lid on the scoring rate.
Will Smeed – 26 runs @ 26, SR: 162.5
Smeed was exceptional during The Hundred but just had the two innings to show off his skills in this tournament. A 13-ball 25* from No.6 against Abu Dhabi showcased his talent.
Northern Warriors
Moeen Ali – 249 runs @ 27.66, SR: 205.78
Moeen relished his role at the top of the order. He batted at an excellent tempo throughout the tournament and forged a belligerent partnership up top alongside Kennar Lewis. The all-rounder’s magnificent form is showing few signs of ceasing.
Samit Patel – 117 runs @ 23.4, SR: 150; 3 wickets @ 20.66, ER: 14.88
Patel was unable to explode with the bat in the manner of his teammates, and he didn’t play a huge role with the ball, bowling in just three of his nine matches.
Chris Jordan – 1 wicket @ 73, ER: 14.6; 4 runs @ 4, SR: 100
England’s leading wicket-taker in men’s T20Is enjoyed a difficult tournament; three appearances resulted in some expensive numbers.
Ross Whiteley – 72 runs @ 18, SR: 160
He didn’t get too many chances to impose himself but when he did, Whiteley provided the sort of thrust the Warriors were after: a nine-ball 26 against Delhi Bulls was followed by a 13-ball 26* against Deccan Gladiators.
Chennai Braves
Ravi Bopara – 134 runs @ 22.33, SR: 186.11; 2 wickets @ 24, ER: 12
The experienced batter rewound the clock on a couple of occasions but didn’t really conjure performances that would catapult his side into the upper echelons of the league. Bopara also picked up a couple of wickets but was expensive.
Roman Walker – 3 wickets @ 39, ER: 16.71
The 21-year-old quick didn’t have proved to be expensive when called upon.
Toby Albert – 2 runs @ 2, SR: 50
The 20-year-old Hampshire batter played just one innings and was dismissed for a 4-ball 2 opening the batting,