Haider Ali shines as Northern down Balochistan by 39 runs

Young opener Haider Ali shined in the batting department to help Northern take down Balochistan enroute to a 39-run victory during their National T20 Cup encounter at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi on Thursday.

Chasing a target of 200 runs, Balochistan openers Imamul Haq and Awais Zia provided their side with a solid foundation after making a partnership of 69 runs.

Imam was the first to depart courtesy of a run-out after scoring 35 off 22 deliveries. Awais (34) soon followed in the next over after being removed by leg-spinner Shadab Khan.

Khan then removed the hard-hitting batsman Bismillah Khan for a golden duck. Batsman Haris Sohail played an enterprising knock of 28 runs off 19 deliveries but fell to fast-bowler Sohail Tanvir before he could convert it into a substantial score.

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Regular wickets kept Balochistan in check as they fell short of the target by 39 runs. Balochistan could only manage 160 runs for the loss of eight wickets.

Shadab was the pick of the bowlers for Northern after picking up two wickets in three overs at the expense of 13 runs.

Earlier, Northern won the toss and elected to bat first. The decision paid dividends as openers Haider Ali and Ali Imran propelled their side to an excellent start with an explosive partnership of 92 runs.

Imran was the first to depart after scoring 41 runs off 22 deliveries and was removed by bowler Amad Butt.

Batsmen Sohail Akhtar (1) and Asif Ali (3) were removed by bowlers Haris Sohail and Amad Butt without putting a significant dent in the score.

The prolific Haider Ali was at his best, displaying the wide range of shots that have made him a rising star in Pakistan cricket. Bowler Akhtar Shah finally got the best of the young batsman courtesy of an LBW after the opener had scored 86 runs off 50 deliveries.

All-rounder Hammad Azam seemed to be in excellent form before an unfortunate run-out cut his innings short after scoring 19 runs off 11 deliveries.

Captain Shadab Khan however displayed his excellent form with the bat scoring an unbeaten 42-run knock off 27 deliveries to help his side reach 199 runs for the loss of six wickets in their allotted overs.

Amad Butt was the pick of the bowlers for the Balochistan side after picking up two wickets in three overs at the expense of 29 runs.