ISLAMABAD: Salman Butt (85 not out) takes Lahore Whites into the semi-finals of National T20 Cricket Championship with easy 27 runs victory over Peshawar at the Pindi Stadium Tuesday. Salman together with Kamran Akmal (52) raised 85 runs for the opening wicket that set the tone for competitive Lahore total. Though Umar Akmal (7) missed the opportunity, Salman and Kamran innings was enough to pose a tough challenge for Peshawar. Salman totally relied on ground strokes hitting 14 boundaries in his innings while Kamran struck three sixes and five boundaries during his breezy knock. Peshawar never got into terms with required run rate and kept on losing wickets regularly. Pacer Umaid Asif (4-26) continued his form with the ball while Asif Ali (2-17) and Ehsan Adil (2-21) also bowled well. Though Wahab Riaz (1-23) picked up just one wicket, he succeeded in putting considerable pressure on Peshawar batsmen. Guest player Naveed Yasin (25) turned out to be the highest run getter for Peshawar. Lahore Whites with nine points now have assured a place in the pre final. Scores: Lahore Region Whites 163-4 in 20 overs: (Salman Butt 85 not out, Kamran Akmal 52, Sohail Khan 1-28, Kamran Ghulam 1-33, Kashif Bhatti 1-39). Peshawar Region 136-10 in 19.3 overs: (Naved Yasin 25, Saif Badar 23, Sohail Khan 22, Umaid Asif 4-26, Asif Ali 2-17, Ehsan Adil 2-21) Result: Lahore Region Whites won by 27 runs. Rawalpindi were down and out of the Championship suffering shocking five wickets defeat against Faisalabad. Saeed Ajmal-led Faisalabad enhanced their chances of making it to the semi-finals with exciting winning on the penultimate ball of the match. Set to score 194 for win, Faisalabad reached home with a blazing six from Faheem Ashraf (26 not out) on the penalty ball. Sohaib Maqsood (87) set the pace for exciting finish. He then left it to Khuram Shahzad (52 not out) and Faheem to finish it off with 78 runs hard hitting partnership of just 5.3 overs to give Faisalabad an unlikely win. Apart from Shahdab Khan (2-23) no other bowler created any impression on Faisalabad batsmen. Earlier, Umar Amin (67) and Zain Abbas (62) helped Rawalpindi raise 193 for 3 which the hosts believed was a winning score. Faisalabad however had other ideas. Score: Rawalpindi 193 for 3 in 20 overs (Umar Amin 67, Zain Abbas 62, Sohail Tanvir 32 not out, Taj Wali 1-31) Faisalabad 199 for 5 in 19.5 overs (Sohaib Maqsood 87, Khurram Shahzad 52 not out, Faheem Ashraf 26 not out). Result: Faisalabad won by five wickets.
