MULTAN – Two matches of the National T-20 Cup will be played at Multan Cricket Stadium today (Monday).
First Match will be played between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh at 1500 hours, while in the second match Balochistan will face Central Punjab team at 1930 hours.
Yesterday, Sindh and Southern Punjab won their respective matches in the ongoing National T20 Cup Second XI teams at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa vs Sindh
An all-round performance from Mohammad Sarwar went in vain as Sindh beat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by four wickets.
After being put into bat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa lost wickets at regular intervals and were reeling at 58 for seven when Mohammad Sarwar and Sajid Khan got together. The duo contributed 66 runs for the eighth wicket and helped the side post 125. Sarwar top-scored with a 34-ball 43, hitting three fours and two sixes, while Sajid remained unbeaten on 25 from 22 balls, striking a four and a six.
For Sindh, Tabish Khan did the damage and ended with match figures of four for 25. Other notable performance came from Fawad Alam picking three wickets for 16.
Chasing 126 runs to win, Mohammad Sarwar ripped through the Sindh top order which included the prize wicket of Sindh’s captain Fawad Alam for 12. He ended-up with four wickets for 20 runs in four overs.
Mohammad Suleman (27 from 28 balls) and Ammad Alam (26 from 17 balls) guided Sindh past the target in 19.1 overs.
Scores in brief: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 125-8, 20 overs (Mohammad Sarwar 43, Sajid Khan 25 not out; Tabish Khan 4-25, Fawad Alam 3-16) Sindh 126-6, 19.1 overs (Mohammad Suleman 27, Ammad Alam 26; Mohammad Sarwar 4-20)
Result: Sindh won by four wickets
Central Punjab v Southern Punjab
In the second match of the day, Southern Punjab beat Central Punjab by eight wickets. After being put to bat, Central Punjab managed to score only 123 for seven in 20 overs.
Muhammad Akhlaq continue his rich form in the tournament and scored yet another half-century. His previous unbeaten knock of 57 from 46 balls helped Central Punjab win against Sindh on 1 October, but his unbeaten 50 off 44 balls in today’s game came in a losing cause.
For Southern Punjab, Dilbar Hussain and Mohammad Irfan picked two wickets apiece for 29 and 15 runs, respectively.
In reply, Southern Punjab chased down the target in the 17.1 overs.
Zain Abbas top-scored with an unbeaten 35-ball 42, laced with four fours and a six. He along with Salman Ali (24 not out off 14 balls, 4 fours) contributed an undefeated 62 runs for the third wicket.
Tayyab Tahir also contributed a quick fire 32 from 28 balls striking four fours.
Scores in brief: Central Punjab 123-7, 20 overs (Mohammad Akhlaq 50 not out; Dilbar Hussain 2-29, Mohammad Irfan 2-15)Southern Punjab 125-2, 17.1 overs (Zain Abbas 42 not out, Tayyab Tahir 32, Salman Ali 24 not out)
Result: Southern Punjab won by eight wickets
