Shadab Khan, Haris Rauf star as Northern see off Southern Punjab

A 37-ball 73 from Zeeshan Ashraf went in vain, as Haris Rauf and Shadab Khan ripped through the Southern Punjab line-up, setting up a 27-run victory for Northern in Multan. Rauf and Shadab shared seven wickets between them to restrict Southern Punjab to 176 for 9, paving the way for Northern's second straight win.

Batting first, Northern opener Zeeshan Malik was dismissed early, but Imran Ali (50 off 39) and Haider Ali (28 off 15) strung together a 49-run partnership to keep the score ticking. Though fast bowler Mohammad Irfan and legspinner Zahid Mahmood chipped in with wickets at regular intervals, they were unable to arrest the flow of runs, as a flurry of late hits from Shadab (28 off 14), Asif Ali (29 off 21) and Mohammad Nawaz (31 off 15) boosted Northern to 203 for 5.

Southern Punjab began their daunting chase poorly, losing in-form captain Shan Masood for a duck inside the first over. Ashraf tried to anchor the innings, putting up handy partnerships with Umar Siddiq and Sohaib Maqsood, but the game swung decisively Northern's way in the 13th over as Shadab struck twice. Rauf then returned in his second spell to take three wickets, ending any faint hopes Southern Punjab may have had.