KARACHI: Pakistan Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq proved on Tuesday he had not lost his crave for cricket’s shortest format while inspiring Faisalabad Wolves to a seven-run win against Multan Tigers in the ran-hit Cool & Cool presents Haier Super 8 T20 Cup.

The outcome of the opening Group ‘B’ match at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad was decided under Duckworth-Lewis method after heavy rains ended the game with the Tigers still requiring 45 runs in 21 balls. At that point in time, the Tigers had collected 139-6 midway through the 17th over mainly due to Naved Yasin who kept their slim hopes alive.

The left-hander surpassed his previous best T20 score of 54 not out with an undefeated 69 in a 31-ball innings containing seven sixes and a brace of boundaries. The highlight of Naved’s brilliant batting was three sixes he struck in Pakistan off-spinner Saeed Ajmal’s final over which went for 22 runs.

But even Naved’s best effort failed to match Misbah, the evergreen Wolves skipper who not only smashed 67 from mere 27 balls but also held four catches to complete a superb all-round performance that deservingly earned him the Rs25,000 man-of-the-match award.

Misbah, who will be celebrating his 41st birthday on May 28, provided the momentum after the Wolves had lost their fifth wicket with the total being 115 at the start of the 16th over. The right-hander’s 10th 50-plus score in T20 cricket was adorned with five sixes and as many boundaries.

The Wolves, opting to bat first once Misbah had won the toss, made an electrifying start. Debutant opener Bilal Shah hit four fours and two sixes in scoring a 12-ball 32 before he became paceman Majid Ali’s first wicket on the latter’s T20 debut.

In fact, Majid was one of six Tigers players to make debut in the shortest form of cricket. The others were Ammar Ali, Ahmed Rasheed, Aftab Niazi, Babar Ali, Kashif Mansha and Sadaif Mehdi.

The Tigers looked to have overcome early jitters with a their virtually new-look side — that lacked the services of internationals Sohaib Maqsood, Mohammad Irfan, Rahat Ali and Zulfiqar Babar for various reasons — but they found Misbah a wall that never collapsed.

And when it was their turn to bat, the Tigers lost wickets upfront as fast bowler Mohammad Talha took care of the first three batsmen in taking 3-23 in three overs.

When this report was being filed, the start of the much-awaited Group ‘B’ clash between arch-rivals Lahore Lions and Karachi Dolphins was delayed by rain.

If there is no play at all then both teams will share the points.

Scoreboard

FAISALABAD WOLVES:

Bilal Shah c Aftab b Majid 32

Farrukh Shehzad st Gulraiz b Naved 25

Asif Ali c Gulraiz b Aamir 1

Khurram Shehzad c Ammar b M. Ali 29

Misbah-ul-Haq not out 67

Jahandad Khan run out 7

Mohammad Salman c Babar b Majid 14

Mohammad Talha not out 0

EXTRAS (W-6, NB-2) 8

TOTAL (for six wkts, 20 overs) 183

FALL OF WKTS: 1-36, 2-38, 3-80, 4-96, 5-115, 6-167

DID NOT BAT: Hasan Mahmood, Saeed Ajmal, Asad Ali.

BOWLING: Aamir Yamin 4-0-42-1 (1w); Majid Ali 4-0-38-2 (4w); Sadaif Mehdi 4-0-59-0 (1nb, 1w); Mohammad Ali 4-0-25-1; Naved Yasin 4-0-19-1.

MULTAN TIGERS:

Ahmed Rasheed c Misbah b Talha 15

Ammar Ali c Misbah b Talha 14

Babar Ali b Talha 1

Aftab Niazi c Misbah b Saeed 25

Naved Yasin not out 69

Gulraiz Sadaf c Misbah b Asad 3

Aamir Yamin run out 5

Kashif Mansha not out 1

EXTRAS (LB-1, W-1, NB-4) 6

TOTAL (for six wkts, 16.3 overs) 139

FALL OF WKTS: 1-28, 2-31, 3-32, 4-97, 5-106, 6-132.

DID NOT BAT: Mohammad Ali, Sadaif Mehdi, Majid Ali.

BOWLING: Mohammad Talha 3-0-23-3; Asad Ali 2.3-0-20-1 (2nb); Saeed Ajmal 4-0-33-1; Hasan Mahmood 4-0-41-0; Jahandad Khan 3-0-21-0.

RESULT: Faisalabad Wolves won by seven runs (D/L Method).

UMPIRES: Ghaffar Kazmi and Mir Dad.

TV UMPIRE: Qaiser Waheed.

MATCH REFEREE: Aziz-ur-Rehman.

MAN-OF-THE-MATCH: Misbah-ul-Haq.

WEDNESDAY’S FIXTURES: Multan Tigers vs Peshawar Panthers (5:00pm); Rawalpindi Rams vs Sialkot Stallions (9:00pm).