Faiq smashes century as Lahore Whites thrash Larkana

LAHORE: Mohammad Faiq smashed his second century of the season as Lahore Region Whites thrashed Larkana by 134 runs in the National T20 Cup Group A clash at the Iqbal Stadium on Monday night.

Besides Lahore Region Whites, FATA, Karachi Region Blues and Sialkot Region also emerged victorious in their matches. Lahore Whites crushed Larkana with a stunning 134-run victory, powered by Mohammad Faiq’s magnificent unbeaten 116 off 56 balls. Faiq reached his fifty in just 20 balls, the fastest of the tournament so far, and his century came off just 50 deliveries, laced with 13 fours and seven sixes. The other contributions from Muhammad Akhlaq (35) and skipper Tayyab Tahir (33) guided Lahore Whites to a daunting 215-4.

In response, Larkana’s batting crumbled and they were all out for just 81 runs in 7.5 overs. Left-arm spinner Kamran Afzal led the Lahore bowling charge with 4-17. Karachi Region Blues outplayed Quetta by seven wickets. Karachi chased down a 139-run target in just 16.4 overs.

Earlier, Quetta’s opener Haseebullah contributed a steady 46 in team’s total of 138 as Karachi Blues’ bowler Mohammad Asghar stole the show with incredible figures of 4-19 from his four overs.

Karachi Blues initially stumbled to 52-3 but were stabilised by skipper Rameez Aziz (56*) and Saifullah Bangash (36*). FATA secured a four-wicket win over Azad Jammu and Kashmi. FATA chased a 150-run target with 17 balls to spare.

AJK’s openers Hasnain Nadeem (53) and Hasan Raza (33) started strongly, adding 86 runs, but their middle and lower order collapsed unexpectedly and the whole team was out for 149. FATA’s Maaz Khan was the standout bowler, claiming 4-11 while Azaz Khan chipped in with three wickets.

FATA’s Mohammad Farooq’s fiery 51 earned him the Player of the Match award. His 76-run partnership with Mohammad Naeem (30) sealed FATA’s victory.