2026 Abu Dhabi Knight Riders season
| 2025-26 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Zayed Cricket Stadium, home ground of Abu Dhabi Knight Riders | |||
| Coach | Dwayne Bravo | ||
| Captain | Jason Holder | ||
| Ground(s) | Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi | ||
| |||
The 2026 season was the fourth season for the International League T20 franchise Abu Dhabi Knight Riders. They were one of the six teams that competed in the 2025-26 International League T20. The team finished in sixth place in the previous season's league stage.[1]
Pre-season
Retentions and signings
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders retained five players from last season.[2] The team additionally signed three international players in their squad for the season.[3]
| Player | Country |
|---|---|
| Andre Russell | Jamaica |
| Alishan Sharafu | United Arab Emirates |
| Charith Asalanka | Sri Lanka |
| Phil Salt | England |
| Sunil Narine | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Player | Country |
|---|---|
| Alex Hales | England |
| Liam Livingstone | England |
| Sherfane Rutherford | Guyana |
Auction summary
The auction took place on 1 October 2025.[4] Abu Dhabi spent US$1,457,000 and bought 11 players, including Brandon McMullen, Michael Pepper, and Unmukt Chand.[5]
Wildcard picks
League Stage
Points table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Desert Vipers (C) | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 0.438 | Advance to Qualifier 1 |
| 2 | MI Emirates (R) | 10 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 0.676 | |
| 3 | Dubai Capitals (4th) | 10 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 10 | 0.578 | Advance to Eliminator |
| 4 | Abu Dhabi Knight Riders (3rd) | 10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 8 | −0.559 | |
| 5 | Gulf Giants | 10 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 6 | −0.310 | Eliminated |
| 6 | Sharjah Warriorz | 10 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 6 | −0.815 |
Fixtures
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
233/4 (20 overs) |
v
|
Sharjah Warriorz
194/9 (20 overs) |
- Sharjah Warriorz won the toss and elected to field.
- Raees Ahmed (Sharjah Warriorz) and Ajay Kumar (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders) made their T20 debuts.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
171/6 (20 overs) |
v
|
Desert Vipers
175/8 (19.3 overs) |
Shimron Hetmyer 48 (25)
Ajay Kumar 3/21 (4 overs) |
- Desert Vipers won the toss and elected to field.
Dubai Capitals
186/4 (20 overs) |
v
|
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
103 (15.3 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
122 (19.3 overs) |
v
|
MI Emirates
123/3 (13.5 overs) |
- MI Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
Dubai Capitals
196/5 (20 overs) |
v
|
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
187/8 (20 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
181/5 (20 overs) |
v
|
Desert Vipers
180/6 (20 overs) |
- Desert Vipers won the toss and elected to field.
Gulf Giants
165/7 (20 overs) |
v
|
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
167/6 (19.2 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
187/4 (20 overs) |
v
|
MI Emirates
152 (20 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to field.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
134/9 (20 overs) |
v
|
Sharjah Warriorz
135/6 (20 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to bat.
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
179/1 (20 overs) |
v
|
Gulf Giants
147/9 (20 overs) |
- Gulf Giants won the toss and elected to field.
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders qualified for the playoffs as a result of this match.
Playoffs
Bracket
| Qualifier 1 | Qualifier 2 | Final | |||||||||||
| 30 December 2025 — Abu Dhabi | 4 January 2026 — Dubai | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Desert Vipers | 233/1 (20 overs) | Q1W | Desert Vipers | 182/4 (20 overs) | ||||||||
| 2 | MI Emirates | 188/7 (20 overs) | 2 January 2026 — Sharjah | Q2W | MI Emirates | 136 (18.3 overs) | |||||||
| Q1L | MI Emirates | 122/3 (16.1 overs) | |||||||||||
| Eliminator | EW | Abu Dhabi Knight Riders | 120/8 (20 overs) | ||||||||||
| 1 January 2026 — Dubai | |||||||||||||
| 3 | Dubai Capitals | 108 (16.2 overs) | |||||||||||
| 4 | Abu Dhabi Knight Riders | 158/7 (20 overs) | |||||||||||
Eliminator
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
158/7 (20 overs) |
v
|
Dubai Capitals
108 (16.2 overs) |
- Abu Dhabi Knight Riders won the toss and elected to bat.
Qualifier 2
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders
120/8 (20 overs) |
v
|
MI Emirates
122/3 (16.1 overs) |
- MI Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
References
- ^ "2025 International League T20 | Team Standings". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 11 March 2026.
- ^ "Narine, Russell, Salt among big retentions for ADKR; Livingstone, Hales and Rutherford signed for ILT20 2025-26". Abu Dhabi Knight Riders. Retrieved 11 March 2026.
- ^ "ILT20: Powell, Ghazanfar retained; Hales, Livingstone among new signings". ESPNCricinfo. 7 July 2025. Retrieved 11 March 2026.
- ^ "All you need to know about the DP World ILT20 Season 4 Player Auction". International League T20. Retrieved 30 September 2025.
- ^ "Abu Dhabi Knight Riders full squad after ILT20 2025 auction". The Times of India. Retrieved 13 March 2026.