During the recent clash between Desert Vipers and MI Emirates in the final of the ILT20 tournament, former West Indies all-rounder Kieron Pollard was seen engaging in a heated exchange with Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah during MI’s batting innings.
The International League T20 was inaugurated for the first time in 2023 with six participating teams. All these teams have been playing since the first season, and the beauty of the tournament lies in the fact that every season has seen a new winner in the tournament.
Desert Vipers can be called one of the most successful franchises in the history of the competition, considering the fact that they have managed to qualify for three out of the four finals they have played in the ILT20.
Kieron Pollard’s heated argument with Naseem Shah in ILT20 final
During the final match of the ILT20 2025-26 between former champions MI Emirates and two-time former runners-up Desert Vipers, an ugly tussle broke out between Emirates captain and veteran all-rounder Kieron Pollard and Vipers fast bowler Naseem Shah.
The incident occurred on the last ball of the 11th over of the game, when Emirates was struggling from a very poor start and Kieron Pollard was facing the Pakistan fast bowler at the crease. As soon as Shah bowled a good length ball, Pollard could not do anything special and Shah laughed and made fun of the batsman.
Pollard, who is not surprised by such behaviour, considering the fact that he has played multiple finals and won the most trophies in global franchise cricket, went straight back to the bowler and engaged in a verbal altercation. Shah had to take a few steps back in front of the big man from the Caribbean. Ultimately the umpires had to intervene to separate the two.
Naseem Shah, who returned with the second spell, got the wicket of the Emirates captain. Kieron Pollard could not lead his team to victory as he walked back a short partnership with Shakib Al Hasan and added just 28 runs on the same number of balls.
Hot moment between Naseem Shah and Pollard in ILT20 final pic.twitter.com/dUuXWLkt5g
– Junaz (@dhilllow_) 4 January 2026
English all-rounder leads Desert Vipers to win maiden ILT20 title
The Desert Vipers have been one of the most successful franchises, appearing in three finals in the last four seasons; However, they have never won the title until this season. At the beginning of the season, they got a new captain in the form of England all-rounder Sam Curran.
With the added responsibility and the World Cup looming, Sam Curran performed well, especially with the bat. Curran, who rose up the batting order, scored an unbeaten 74 in the final to take his team to a respectable score.
Curran finished as the leading run-scorer in the series with 397 runs, and David Payne was one of the best performers with the ball for them. Naseem Shah also stunned with a spell of 3/18 in the final, which included crucial breakthroughs.
Overall, with a 46-run win over Emirates, the Vipers won their first title in the ILT20 after finishing runners-up in the 2023 and 2025 seasons.
Captain Pollard fails to secure second ILT20 title for MI Emirates
MI veteran Kieron Pollard may have retired from the IPL, but he still continues to represent all other MI franchises in global T20 leagues like IPL, MLC and SA20. He was named the captain of MI Emirates for the 2025–26 season.
Despite valiant efforts from various players throughout the season, the Emirates could not get their hands on the Cup after losing their second ILT20 final due to a poor batting card. Muhammad Wasim remained their highest scorer, with Tom Banton coming second.
Kieron Pollard himself remained a strong player in the lower order, with a sky-high 15 sixes in the tournament, and young Allah Ghazanfar was their highest wicket-taker for the season with 15 wickets.
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