The Desert Vipers will play against the MI Emirates in Qualifier-1 of the ILT20 2025-26 season at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium. The encounter is very important, as the winning team will gain direct entry into the final, whereas the losing side will have one more chance to qualify for the final in Qualifier-2.

Desert Vipers have been the standout team of the tournament so far, finishing the league stage at the pinnacle of the points table with eight wins from ten matches. Their batting has been reliable, as players such as Max Holden, Sam Curran, Dan Lawrence, and Fakhar Zaman have scored runs pretty consistently. The bowlers have done a pretty good job, too, with Khuzaima Tanveer, Naseem Shah, and David Payne stepping up at every crucial juncture when the team needed breaks.

MI Emirates head into this big game full of confidence after winning their last five matches in a row to end the league stage in second place. Opening has been ensured by Muhammad Waseem, and the middle has been stabilized by Nicholas Pooran and Kieron Pollard. Allah Ghazanfar has led their bowling unit, ably supported by Fazalhaq Farooqi and Zahoor Khan, and has performed relatively well under pressure

DV vs MIE: Head-to-Head Record (T20s)

• Matches Played: 6
  
• Desert Vipers Won: 3
  
• MI Emirates Won: 3
  
• Tied/No Result: 0
  

DV vs MIE: Pitch Report

The pitch at Sheikh Zayed Stadium usually offers balance for both batters and bowlers. The faster bowlers may be able to get some movement initially, but the scoring becomes better once the batsmen get adjusted. The spinners might not obtain enough turn, but they can manage to slow down the game in middle overs. Overall, teams often prefer chasing here, as the conditions do improve later in the game.

See Also: IND-W vs SL-W 5th T20I: Head-to-head, pitch report and predicted playing XIs

DV vs MIE: Predicted Playing XIs

Desert Vipers (DV):

Max Holden, Andries Gous (WK), Hasan Nawaz, Sam Curran (C), Jason Roy, Dan Lawrence, Vriitya Aravind, Khuzaima Tanveer, Naseem Shah, David Payne, Qais Ahmad

MI Emirates (MIE):

Muhammad Waseem, Tom Banton (WK), Sanjay Krishnamurthi, Kieron Pollard (C), Shakib Al Hasan, Dan Mousley, Romario Shepherd, Arab Gul Momand, Allah Ghazanfar, Zahoor Khan, Fazalhaq Farooqi