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The Toronto Nationals showcased their prowess with both bat and ball, overpowering the defending champions, the Montreal Tigers, by 8 wickets in an exhilarating final to capture the championship of the fourth season of the Global T20 Canada on Sunday.
This victory marks the Toronto Nationals’ first title in North America’s top T20 league. During the tournament, Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visited the Global T20 Canada venue, engaged with the Montreal Tigers’ management, and was honored with a team jersey.
Toronto captain Colin Munro won the toss and chose to field, a decision that proved brilliant as the Montreal Tigers crumbled to a modest score of 96/9 in their 20 overs.
Andries Gous played a crucial role in securing a decisive win for the Toronto Nationals with a match-winning half-century. Despite battling through a broken finger shortly after taking his place at the crease, the USA international scored an unbeaten 58 off 49 balls, leading his team to a resounding victory.
The challenging batting conditions at TD Stadium in Brampton were further exacerbated by heavy rain, which postponed the toss by a couple of hours.
Australian pacer Jason Behrendorff capitalized on the conditions with an impressive swing bowling performance, taking 3/8 in his four overs. His efforts led to a significant collapse in the Montreal top order and put Toronto in a commanding position.
Montreal faced an early setback when Toronto pacer Romario Shepherd dismissed opener Praveen Kumar in the second over. The situation worsened in the next over as Behrendorff claimed two quick wickets, dismissing Gerhard Erasmus (2) and Tim Seifert (0) on consecutive deliveries.
Chris Lynn (3) also fell quickly, as he attempted a risky slog off Behrendorff and gave an easy top edge to Toronto wicketkeeper Unmukt Chand.
Sherfane Rutherford (1) was dismissed almost immediately after arriving, caught off Junaid Siddiqui’s bowling, leaving the Tigers in dire straits with half their lineup back in the dugout before the end of the power play.
Despite this, Corbin Bosch (35) and Jaskaran Singh (16) combined for a crucial 46-run partnership, ensuring the Tigers’ innings lasted the full 20 overs.
Toronto’s chase began poorly as skipper Colin Munro was dismissed for a duck by Azmatullah Omarzai on the second ball of the first over. Bosch then bowled out opener Unmukt Chand (4) in the following over, sparking hope for a Montreal comeback.
However, any dreams of a Tigers’ turnaround were dashed as Andries Gous and Rassie van der Dussen (30 not out) formed an unbeaten 85-run partnership, guiding the Nationals to victory without further issues.
Toronto Nationals’ Romario Shepherd earned the Bowler of the Tournament award for his impressive 14 wickets, while George Munsey of the Brampton Wolves was recognized as the Batter of the Tournament for leading the run charts with 218 runs.
Canadian talent Dilpreet Bajwa, from the Montreal Tigers, was honored as the Emerging Player of the Tournament. Meanwhile, Junaid Siddique, the UAE import for the Toronto Nationals, was named the Player of the Tournament.
