All-round Peshawar Panthers clinch T20 title

Peshawar Panthers put in a fine all-round showing to defeat Lahore Lions by seven wickets in the final of the Haier T20 Cup. Panthers finish the tournament unbeaten.

Lions had the advantage of winning the toss, and decided to bat. However, their batsmen didn't justify the decision, with most of them struggling for momentum. They went at over a run-a-ball in only one of their six Powerplay overs to start with, and that set the pace for the innings. Kamran Akmal struggled in particular, managing only 4 off 10 before edging behind. He and the other opener, Abid Ali, were dismissed off successive deliveries, by left-arm pacer Taj Wali.

By the halfway stage of their innings, Lions had only got to 55. That they got past the 130-run mark was mainly down to a brisk half-century from No. 3 Imam-ul-Haq. He ended not out on 52 off 41, with six fours, but a lack of support from the other end meant Lions could only manage a below-par 133 for 9.

Panthers' innings was more a team affair, with all of the top order contributing cameos to get the team home with four balls to spare. While No. 3 Iftikhar Ahmed top scored with 50 not out, it was the openers - Rafatullah Mohmand and Israrullah - who had ensured any hopes Lions had of sneaking back into the game were well and truly snuffed out with an explosive start to the chase.

The pair added 43 runs in four overs, hitting ten boundaries between them. By the end of their Powerplay, Panthers needed just 77 more at 5.50 an over, and so it was a canter.