RAWALPINDI: Middle-order batsman Abdul Samad displayed nerves of steel as he powered Markhors to a fascinating three-wicket victory over the Lions by hitting a six off the last ball in the 12th match of the T20 Champions Cup here at the Rawalpindi Stadium on Sunday.
Chasing a daunting target of 188 runs, Markhors needed five runs off the last ball of the innings with Samad on the attack.
The right-handed batsman defied the odds and hit Shahid Aziz for a six to give his team a narrow victory. He scored an unbeaten nine in four deliveries, which included six victories.
Apart from Abdul Samad, captain Iftikhar Ahmed and batsman Mohammad Faizan made significant contributions, scoring 66 runs each.
Faizan bowled 42 deliveries while Iftikhar conceded just 31 and batted at a strike rate of over 200 in an innings that featured two fours and eight sixes.
The duo shared an 88-run partnership for the third wicket, which was followed by a grueling middle-order collapse.
Shahid took four wickets for the Lions but it proved costly as he lost 42 runs in his four overs. Khushdil Shah and Aamer Yamin, on the other hand, took a scalp each.
Opting to bat first, a combined effort helped the Lions post a commendable total of 187/7 on the board in the allotted 20 overs.
Leading the way was the experienced and versatile Yamin, who scored the best result with an unbeaten 39 from 27 deliveries, laced with two fours and another six.
Apart from Yamin, captain Imam-ul-Haq (28), Hasan Nawaz (24) and Rohail Nazir (22) were the other notable winners.
For Markhors, Akif Javed and Nisar Ahmed bagged two wickets each while Mohammad Nawaz and Bilawal Bhatti contributed one wicket each.
The three-wicket win took Markhors to second place in the Champions T20 Cup standings with eight points from five matches, while the Lions remained third with four points from as many matches.
