Panthers, Tigers and Cheetahs all belong to the family of cats, but all had different fortunes on an interesting Twenty20 day. Panthers feasted on their prey, while Tigers were eaten away by Wolves. Cheetahs from Afghanistan gave Rams a hard run before getting rammed.
Away from star action, Peshawar Panthers and Islamabad Leopards contested in the first match which proved an easy one for the Umar Gul-led Panthers.
Iftikhar Anjum asked Panthers to bat first, which they obliged by posting a par score of 150 for 9. Rafatullah started aggressively but early collapse at the other end necessitated some consolidation, which was provided by top scorer Aftab Alam (36 off 33) and Shoaib Khan Senior (26).
Captain Umar Gul hit two lusty blows in the end. Zohaib Ahmed took 3 for 21. In reply, Gul and Nauman Habib reduced the Capital City team to 48 for 5.
Despite Naeem Anjum’s effort of 4o off 41 balls, they were blown away quickly for 122 in the last over. Habib took 4 for 17, but Gul was named man of the match for his 3 wickets and 20 runs.
Wolves, batting first, posted a competitive 161 for 8, riding on the batting form of Asif Ali and Khurram Shehzad, who both fell in their forties.
Four run outs in the dying overs did not help much, as Tigers gave away 30 runs in extras, including 17 in wides. In reply Naved Yasin departed early, but Zain Abbas (28) and Gulraiz Sadaf (32) carried Tigers’ hopes until both fell one after the other.
Imran Khalid had taken two cheap wickets, but introduction of Saeed Ajmal proved last nail in the coffin. His figures of 4 overs, 5 runs and 3 wickets were second most economical bowling figures in all T20s. Wolves downed Tigers by 54 runs.
Afghans after landing just a day earlier went into the match without any nets, but showed tremendous guts against Faysal Bank super eight T20 champions, Rawalpindi Rams.
Mohammad Nabi chose to bat after beating Sohail Tanvir on the flick of the coin. Top three did not contribute, but pair of Samiullah Shenwari and Najibullah Zardan put on 78 enterprising runs before former was bowled by Tanvir for 52 off 32 balls which included 2 fours and 3 sixes.
Zardan and Nabi ensured strong finish as Rams; fielding faltered against the onslaught. Zardan remained unbeaten on 51 off 34 balls with 3 fours and as many sixes. In reply Rams raced to 22 of 8 balls, before Naved Malik was castled by Gulbodin Naib with a beauty of an inswinger.
Rawalpindi were reduced to 49 for 3, but opener Awais Zia, who was in blistering form, did not let the scoring rate go down. He fell after making 60 off 41 balls including 10 fours and a six. Umar Amin (43 off 38 balls) carried the ship thereafter as Hammad Azam finished the match in a hurry in the 19th over.
Zia was named man of the match. Afghans, though lost, but have signaled their intentions and showcased their talents in front of a capacity crowd, dominated by Afghans, in terms of vociferousness if not numbers.
Venue: National stadium, Karachi September 28, 2011
Scorecard credit: CricketArchives.com
Group D: Islamabad Leopards could not handle Peshawar Panthers’ seam attack
Iftikhar Anjum asked Panthers to bat first, which they obliged by posting a par score of 150 for 9. Rafatullah started aggressively but early collapse at the other end necessitated some consolidation, which was provided by top scorer Aftab Alam (36 off 33) and Shoaib Khan Senior (26).
Captain Umar Gul hit two lusty blows in the end. Zohaib Ahmed took 3 for 21. In reply, Gul and Nauman Habib reduced the Capital City team to 48 for 5.
Despite Naeem Anjum’s effort of 4o off 41 balls, they were blown away quickly for 122 in the last over. Habib took 4 for 17, but Gul was named man of the match for his 3 wickets and 20 runs.
Click for scorecard
Group B: Faisalabad Wolves thrash Multan Tigers in a boring encounter
Four run outs in the dying overs did not help much, as Tigers gave away 30 runs in extras, including 17 in wides. In reply Naved Yasin departed early, but Zain Abbas (28) and Gulraiz Sadaf (32) carried Tigers’ hopes until both fell one after the other.
Imran Khalid had taken two cheap wickets, but introduction of Saeed Ajmal proved last nail in the coffin. His figures of 4 overs, 5 runs and 3 wickets were second most economical bowling figures in all T20s. Wolves downed Tigers by 54 runs.
Click for scorecard
Group B: Afghan Cheetahs fought well but Rawalpindi Rams came out on top
Mohammad Nabi chose to bat after beating Sohail Tanvir on the flick of the coin. Top three did not contribute, but pair of Samiullah Shenwari and Najibullah Zardan put on 78 enterprising runs before former was bowled by Tanvir for 52 off 32 balls which included 2 fours and 3 sixes.
Zardan and Nabi ensured strong finish as Rams; fielding faltered against the onslaught. Zardan remained unbeaten on 51 off 34 balls with 3 fours and as many sixes. In reply Rams raced to 22 of 8 balls, before Naved Malik was castled by Gulbodin Naib with a beauty of an inswinger.
Rawalpindi were reduced to 49 for 3, but opener Awais Zia, who was in blistering form, did not let the scoring rate go down. He fell after making 60 off 41 balls including 10 fours and a six. Umar Amin (43 off 38 balls) carried the ship thereafter as Hammad Azam finished the match in a hurry in the 19th over.
Zia was named man of the match. Afghans, though lost, but have signaled their intentions and showcased their talents in front of a capacity crowd, dominated by Afghans, in terms of vociferousness if not numbers.
Click for scorecard
Venue: National stadium, Karachi September 28, 2011
Scorecard credit: CricketArchives.com
Published in SportPulse.net on 28/9/11
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