KARACHI (Monitoring Desk): Khyber Pakhtunkhwa bagged their third title of the 2020-21 season as they comprehensively defeated Central Punjab by seven wickets in the final of the Pakistan Cup at the State Bank Stadium.
Opener Sahibzada Farhan continued his sublime form with yet another century. The right-handed batter scored an unbeaten 103 off 102 balls, powered by five fours and as many sixes.
He added 69 runs for the first-wicket with Musadiq Ahmed (33) to provide his side a solid platform for their 240-run chase.
For the second wicket, he and Aamer Azmat posted a 66-run stand. Azmat smacked 45 off 28 balls which included four boundaries and three sixes.
Iftikhar Ahmed contributed 40 off 35 balls (three fours, two sixes) in a 69-run third-wicket stand with Farhan.
Farhan reached his century with a six while Adil Amin played the winning shot as the jubilant Khyber Pakhtunkhwa side completed the chase in 36.1 overs.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa claimed the National T20 Cup in October under the leadership of Mohammad Rizwan while they were the joint winners of the Quaid-e-Azam (QeA) Trophy with Central Punjab.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa bagged PKR5million winners’ prize while Central Punjab was awarded PKR2.5million.
Earlier, Central Punjab were bowled out for 239 in 47 overs after put into bat by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s captain Khalid Usman. Left-arm-pacer Mohammad Imran dismissed Rizwan Hussain (20) on score of 42 while Asif Afridi removed Mohammad Akhlaq on the score of 45
Opener Tayyab Tahir held the innings together as wickets fell at regular intervals at the other end. The right-hander scored 67 off 88 balls (one four, two sixes) top-score for his side.
Tayyab was the fifth-wicket to fall with the score at 167. Raza Ali Dar who added 83 runs for the third-wicket with Tayyab scored 48 off 45 balls with the help of seven fours. Young all-rounder Qasim Akram scored a gritty 50, he faced 57 balls and hit two fours and two sixes.
Left-arm-spinner Asif Afridi took five wickets and conceded only 39 runs. Mohammad Imran finished with three wickets for 42 runs in eight overs.
Individual Awards
Player-of-the-Match and PKR35,000: Asif Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa)
Player-of-the-Tournament and PKR250,000: Hammad Azam (Northern)
Best Batsman of the Tournament and PKR250,000: Tayyab Tahir (Central Punjab)
Best Bowler of the Tournament and PKR250,000: Asif Afridi (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa)
Best Wicketkeeper of the Tournament and PKR250,000: Mohammad Azam Khan (Sindh).
