National T20 Cup, Southern Punjab beat Central Punjab after a thrilling match

Southern Punjab defeated Central Punjab by 3 runs in the twenty-fourth league match of the National T20 Cup. Chasing 206 runs, the Southern Punjab team could only score 202 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in the allotted twenty overs.

Central Punjab did not have a good start in pursuit of the desired target, when the captain Babar Azam returned to the pavilion without opening the account, the Central Punjab team came under pressure.

Wicketkeeper batsman Kamran Akmal tried to manage the team by establishing a partnership of 43 runs with Abdullah Shafiq, but they also lost their courage on an individual score of 32.

The next 5 wickets of Central Punjab could only add 112 runs on the scoreboard, after which all-rounder Faheem Ashraf’s lightning-fast half-century made with the help of five sixes in 19 balls made the match interesting, but he too lost courage after scoring 54 runs. His innings included 5 sixes and 4 fours.

7 4s ?
50 runs ?
1 wonderful innings?#CPvSP Highlights: https://t.co/7H6AE6lXT4#NationalT20Cup | #HarHaalMainCricket | @shani_official pic.twitter.com/EZktAZ7Vpc

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) October 13, 2020

Central Punjab needed 12 runs in the last over of the match to win but Usman Qadir and Zafar Gohar failed to achieve the desired target. Muhammad Abbas took 3 wickets while Amir Yameen and Muhammad Imran took 2 and 2 wickets respectively.

Earlier, Central Punjab captain Babar Azam won the toss and decided to field first, then Southern Punjab scored 205 runs for the loss of 3 wickets in the allotted twenty overs thanks to top-order batsman Hussain Talat’s unbeaten innings of 59 runs off 36 balls. He along with captain Shan Masood and middle order batsman Khushdil Shah formed a partnership of 50 and 68 runs respectively.

Shan Masood scored 50 runs off 38 balls with the help of 7 fours. In the final overs of the innings, Khushdal Shah’s knock of 47 runs off 23 balls with the help of 3 sixes and 4 fours helped the team to cross the 200 mark. Zafar Gohar took 2 wickets and Ahmed Basheer took one wicket.

Fast bowler Muhammad Abbas was declared man of the match for taking three wickets, remember that in the 23rd match, Sindh defeated Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after a sensational match.