Former England opener Alex Hales became the second-highest run-scorer in T20 history but was on the losing side as Dubai Capitals beat Desert Vipers to reach the final of the International League T20.
Hales, 36, made 67 from 32 balls as he moved ahead of Pakistan's Shoaib Malik and West Indies all-rounder Kieron Pollard.
The right-hander has scored 13,558 runs and is now only behind West Indies opener Chris Gayle, who has 14,562 runs.
Hales averages 30.06 across 488 innings and 2,074 of his runs came for England, including 212 in their 2022 T20 World Cup-winning campaign in Australia.
He was supported by Dan Lawrence (36 off 26), Max Holden (35 off 25) and Sam Curran (24 off 21) as Vipers, who topped the group stage table, posted 189-7.
Capitals openers Adam Rossington and Shai Hope shared 51 for the first wicket but the key innings were played by Afghanistan's Gulbadin Naib (62 off 39) and Sam Billings (38 off 16).
They needed 12 from the final over and Gulbadin reduced that to one off two balls before being dismissed by Lockie Ferguson.
But Zimbabwe's Sikandar Raza hit a four off the final ball to seal a five-wicket win and a place in Sunday's final.
Vipers will have another chance in Friday's qualifier against the winner of Thursday's eliminator between MI Emirates and Sharjah Warriorz.
EFL Cup semi-final: Newcastle beat Arsenal to reach Wembley final – reaction
Playing in front of President Trump will be 'an honour' – Kelce
Rampant Celtic hit Dundee for six to go 13 points clear
The highly anticipated Motherland spin-off
Lucy Punch returns as ‘alpha mum’ Amanda to face downsizing and the horror of modern teens
The true story of a vicious cyber-harassment campaign
Stalked uncovers the true story of a young woman’s journey to expose her anonymous cyber-stalker
Uncanny's chilling return to iPlayer
Do ghosts exist? Danny Robins investigates real-life stories of the supernatural
Drs Chris and Xand explore the science of exercise
How much exercise should we be doing, and how does it help our bodies?
'It is a revolution' – how rugby is taking Paris
Dreary or incredible? Burnley's records divides fans
Kelce and Swift – an NFL love story that almost never was
Superstars compete at Alpine World Ski Championships – how to watch
'Football dreams & a business empire' – Ronaldo's relentless drive at 40
Meet the girls pushing to become future F1 stars
In Pictures: Sporting photos of the week
'A brutal reality for Man Utd' – McNulty's deadline day verdict
All the transfer deadline day done deals
'An unbelievably sought-after player' – who is Spurs signing Tel?
Lions watch: Who impressed in Six Nations round one?
Best free agent ever? The story behind Barkley's stunning season
Five talking points from opening Six Nations games
Chiefs bid for immortality – countdown to Super Bowl 59 begins
Were Australia really 16-0 better than England?
'Tenacity, endeavour, composure' – how Arsenal earned statement win
The painful divorce of Marcus Rashford and Manchester United
Mumbai mauling shows McCullum has the tough challenge he wanted
'The perfect batter for his time' – meet India's latest record-breaker
How Forest's Elanga & Gibbs-White 'ran Brighton ragged' Video
Copyright © 2025 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
Alex Hales: Ex-England opener becomes second-highest T20 cricket run-scorer – BBC.com
Related articles
