Shadab Khan’s 4 for 13 and Carter’s 29-ball 55 give the Vipers their first GSL win
San Francisco Unicorns were held to 151 for 7 at Providence, and the Desert Vipers chased it down inside 17 overs to open their account in the Global Super League.
Jul 28, 2026
The Desert Vipers finally have a win at the Global Super League. Shadab Khan took 4 for 13 to pull San Francisco Unicorns apart at Providence on Monday night, and Zachary Carter then took the chase away in the powerplay, hitting 55 off 29 balls in a nine-wicket win with 23 balls unused. It was a 4.30am start for anyone watching in India, and it was over before breakfast.
Shadab strangles the middle overs
San Francisco captain Hassan Khan chose to bat and for a while the Unicorns looked well set. Tim Robinson and Connor Esterhuizen put on 64, reaching their fifty stand inside 44 balls, and at 89 for 2 in the 13th over a total north of 170 looked reasonable.
Shadab, captaining the Vipers, made sure it never got there. His four overs of leg spin cost 13 runs and brought four wickets: Esterhuizen caught and bowled for 37, Robinson picking out Nathan Smith for 46, Sanjay Krishnamurthi holing out to Rilee Rossouw, and Fabian Allen bowled second ball for nought. The Unicorns went from 111 for 3 in the 15th over to 125 for 6 in the space of 14 balls.
Hammad Azam salvaged something with 21 not out off 13, clearing the rope twice late on to push San Francisco to 151 for 7. Four of the first six matches at Providence had gone the way of the side batting first, so the Unicorns had reason to fancy it. Their total lasted 16.1 overs.
Carter empties the powerplay
Carter went after Ghulam Mudassar and the game was effectively settled before the strategic timeout. The Vipers had 50 on the board in 22 balls and 63 by the end of the six-over powerplay without losing anybody. Carter reached his own fifty off 26 balls with six fours and three sixes, and by the time Anirudh Immanuel bowled him for 55 the opening stand was worth 74.
Mudassar’s two overs went for 38. A rain break at 67 for 0 in the seventh over gave San Francisco a pause to think, and it changed nothing. Saiteja Mukkamalla finished on 52 not out from 42 balls and Rilee Rossouw hit six fours in an unbeaten 38 off 26 to close it out with almost four overs to spare.
Two points, and a net run rate worth having
This was the Vipers’ first win in three attempts after a 38-run defeat to Lahore Qalandars and a two-wicket loss to the hosts. Two points and the manner of the win lift them to third, level on points with San Francisco but comfortably ahead on net run rate, which is the sort of margin that decides a five-team round robin.
Guyana are still unbeaten at the top with six points from three, Lahore have four, and Perth Scorchers XI are yet to win. The Vipers meet the Scorchers next, at 4.30am India time on Wednesday, and on this evidence four overs of Shadab is the best thing they have going.