FAISALABAD: Saim Ayub backed his five-wicket haul with a brisk knock up the order and propelled Panthers to a crushing seven-wicket victory over Markhors in the Qualifier 1 of the Champions One-Day Cup here at Iqbal Stadium on Tuesday.
The crushing victory powered Shadab Khan-led Panthers into the Champions One-Day Cup final while Mohammad Rizwan’s Markhors will face the winning team of the Eliminator between Stallions and Lions, scheduled on Wednesday.
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Markhors’ captain Mohammad Rizwan’s decision to bat first backfired as their batters skittled against a disciplined Panthers’ bowling attack and could accumulate 137 runs before being bundled out in 37 overs.
Young pacer Ali Raza gave Panthers a head start with the ball as he got Haseebullah (3) caught behind on the second delivery of the second over.
In-form Mohammad Hasnain then capitalized on the start provided by Raza and struck thrice in quick succession to leave Markhors reeling at 25/4 in 6.5 overs.
Following the early debacle, Iftikhar Ahmed and Salman Ali Agha launched a recovery with a cautious fifth-wicket partnership.
The duo had settled down, having scored 67 runs for the fifth wicket but had a disappointing end to their stand as Iftikhar was run out.
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Iftikhar scored 39 off 61 balls, hitting three fours and a six.
Saim Ayub then ran through Markhors’ lower middle order with a five-wicket haul. The table-toppers lost their remaining five wickets for just 35 runs and were eventually bundled out in 37 overs.
Salman Ali Agha remained the top-scorer for Markhors with a gutsy half-century, scoring 52 off 81 deliveries, laced up with four fours and a six.
Saim Ayub was the standout bowler for the Panthers, returning brilliant figures of 5/24, followed by Hasnain’s 3/25 while Raza made one scalp.
It is worth mentioning that the winning team of the ongoing fixture will advance into the final of the Champions One-Day Cup while the loser will have another chance to earn the qualification.
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