FAISALABAD: Peshawar and Lahore Blues completed the semi-finals line up of the National T20 Cup as they beat Faisalabad and Sialkot, respectively on Monday night here at the Iqbal Stadium.
Peshawar got over the line against Faisalabad in a close encounter as they won by three wickets with only four balls to spare.
Peshawar’s Mohammad Amir Khan, after claiming three victims with the ball, struck two sixes in his unbeaten six-ball 14 after walking in at 120-7 in the 18th over to make sure Peshawar chase the 139-run target and secure a semi-final berth.
Earlier, Faisalabad had opted to bat first and were reduced to 14-2 before Ali Shan (51 off 39, three fours and as many sixes) and Taimoor Sultan (36 off 26, two fours) rebuilt the innings with a 77-run partnership.
After Ali’s departure on the last ball of 15th over, Faisalabad could only add 37 runs to their total off the last five overs.
For Peshawar, Amir returned figures of 3-25. While Nizar Ali picked up two wickets.
In turn, Peshawar raced to 54 runs in 6.3 overs losing Maaz Sadaqat and Sahibzada Farhan (26 off 13, five fours) and Adil Amin in the process. Israrullah (30 off 27, five fours) and Iftikhar Ahmed (20 off 33) stitched a valuable 42-run stand, when Faisalabad eked out the scalps of Nizar Ali in 15th over and Iftikhar in 18th.
Apart from Amir’s brilliance with the bat, Peshawar were also aided by Mohammad Amir Barki’s nine-ball 12 which included one six. The eighth-wicket duo of Amir and Mohammad Zulkifal added unbeaten 20 runs in eight balls to steer Peshawar to victory.
In the fourth quarter-final, Lahore Blues clinched a semi-final spot with a 33-run win over Sialkot here.
Batting first, Lahore posted 184, powered by Umar Siddiq’s 44-ball 65 and Nisar Ahmad’s quick-fire 21 off seven. Hasan Ali starred for Sialkot, taking 4-42, including three wickets and a run-out in the final four balls of the innings.
In reply, Sialkot fell short at 151 in 18.5 overs despite Mirza Tahir Baig’s blistering 77 off 47 including five fours and five sixes. Lahore Blues, led by Hussain Talat and Nisar Ahmad’s two wickets apiece sealed the win. Mohammad Rizwan and Mohammad Irfan picked up two wickets each.
Published in Dawn, March 26th, 2025
