Gulf Giants

In August 2022, the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) announced the establishment of the International League T20, a Twenty20 Cricket competition to be started in 2023. The teams for the competition, representing 6 different regions of the United Arab Emirates, including Dubai, were put up for auction in UAE in September 2022. The Gulf franchise was purchased by Adani Sportsline, led by Adani Group. The team unveiled their logo and jersey in January 2023 through their social media handles. In January 2023, Gulf Giants released their anthem ‘Bring It On’, composed and performed by the popular Bollywood composer Salim-Sulaiman.

The Gulf Giants started their second season strongly by defeating the Sharjah Warriors by 31 runs. Jamie Smith scored 42 runs off 18 balls. Contributions from Usman Khan and Jordan Cox helped Gulf Giants post 198. Jamie Overton then starred with a 3-wicket haul as the Giants got their season off to a winning start. Overton scored 41 in 18 balls against the MI Emirates in the Giants’ second game during the run chase but it was not enough to chase the score set by the MI Emirates. Chris Lynn then scored 67 against Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, but the Knight Riders managed to chase down the total. After the loss against the Vipers in their next game, the Gulf Giants went on a 4-match winning streak. Shimron Hetmyer's innings of 53 helped the Giants put up a score of 187. Zuhaib Zubair took 4 wickets for 22 runs and Giants picked up a crucial win. They faced MI Emirates in Qualifier 1, where they were defeated by 45 runs. The Giants faced the Dubai Capitals in Qualifier 2, where James Vince scored a fifty. The Giants scored 138 runs in their 20 overs, which was not enough as the Dubai Capitals chased down the score in 15.5 overs. Vince was the highest run-scorer in the tournament, scoring 356 runs, while Zuhaib Zubair was the highest wicket-taker for the Giants, with 11 wickets.