KHYBER Pakhtunkhwa’s top-scorer Khushdil Shah goes on the attack against Southern Punjab.
Umar Amin wasted a great chance to make a significant score as the discarded Pakistan left-hander departed for a 32-ball 38 (three fours and two sixes), while Imad thrashed a brace of sixes and as many fours in a five-ball 22 not out in the final over of the innings.
Faheem picked up three wickets but gave away 44 runs.
In the day’s evening fixture, Saif Badar underlined his vast potential with a crucial career-best contribution and seasoned Wahab Riaz excelled with a superb all-round effort as Southern Punjab also sealed a four-wicket success over Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to infuse new life into the competition.
Opting to bat first, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were heading for a modest score when Wahab’s third wicket left them in strife at 51-4. But skipper Mohammad Rizwan (45 off 40 balls, four fours and one six) and young Khushdil Shah, who finished undefeated with a 32-ball 56 (five fours and two sixes) came together to share a stand worth 83 runs.
After his brilliant bowling spell, Wahab changed the complexion of the game with a much-needed cameo in the closing overs after Saif and Aamir Yamin (15) kept Southern Punjab’s hopes alive with a vital partnership of 55 after the first five wickets went down with 51 runs on the board.
Saif, 21, was denied the chance of scoring his maiden T20 50 but his 35-ball 49 (four fours and one six) together with man-of-the-match Wahab’s decisive 17-ball 42 (five fours and two sixes) carried Southern Punjab over the line with nine deliveries to spare.
Tuesday’s results:
First XI — Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad:
Southern Punjab beat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by four wickets.
KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA 154-5 in 20 overs (Khushdil Shah 56 not out, Mohammad Rizwan 45, Sahibzada Farhan 27; Wahab Riaz 3-28); SOUTHERN PUNJAB 155-6 in 18.3 overs (Saif Badar 49 not out, Wahab Riaz 42 not out, Sohaib Maqsood 24, Mohammad Mohsin 3-37).
Central Punjab beat Northern by four wickets.
NORTHERN 222-6 in 20 overs (Asif Ali 93, Mohammad Nawaz 50, Umar Amin 38, Imad Wasim 22 not out; Faheem Ashraf 3-44); CENTRAL PUNJAB 226-6 in 19.5 overs (Ahmed Shehzad 111 not out, Saad Nasim 29, Faheem Ashraf 28, Rizwan Hussain 20; Imad Wasim 3-38, Sohail Tanvir 2-49).
Second XI — National Stadium, Karachi:
Southern Punjab beat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by three wickets.
KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA 197-6 in 20 overs (Nabi Gul 94, Kamran Ghulam 23; Mohammad Imran 3-22); SOUTHERN PUNJAB 199-7 in 19.4 overs (Zeeshan Ashraf 52, Zain Abbas 47, Mohammad Mohsin 30; Khalid Usman 2-36).
Northern beat Central Punjab by 19 runs.
NORTHERN 162 in 20 overs (Sarmad Bhatti 47, Faizan Riaz 34, Nauman Ali 33; Raza Ali Dar 7-29, Aizaz Cheema 2-30); CENTRAL PUNJAB 143-9 in 20 overs (Usman Salahuddin 27, Mohammad Saad 24, Nauman Anwar 23; Usama Mir 3-31, Raza Hasan 2-19, Sadaf Hussain 2-26).
Wednesday’s fixtures:
First XI: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa vs Sindh (1:30pm); Central Punjab vs Balochistan (5:30pm).
Second XI: Sindh vs Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (9:30am); Balochistan vs Central Punjab (1:30pm).
Published in Dawn, October 16th, 2019