Well, that got over rather too quickly! From a decent position of 67/1, Lahore Blues managed to get bundled out for just a 100. They came up against the brilliance of Usama Mir and now that has put their qualification in a conundrum. Sialkot on the other hand are flying high and were superior by a mile in each and every skillset of the game.
We have another game lined up today from the same ground. Karachi Blues take on Multan in that contest so stay tuned for that one.
On this note, I, Manan Mehta would like to take your leave on behalf of my colleagues Deepak Prakash and Ghanendra Singh Thakur. B-byee!!!
Usama Mir (Sialkot Captain and POTM): "(On bagging the best wickets in Pakistan's domestic cricket history) I didn't know these were the best figures ever. I was not feeling that well today. I just wanted to put some extra effort today because of that. I knew that if I bowl in the right areas, I will get success as a leg spinner.
(Help from the pitch) I was getting a good skid from the wicket. So, I kept the stumps in play and varied my pace to be unpredictable.
(Thoughts coming into the game) The last match was a wakeup call. We did not play to our potential then. Today we fought like a team from Sialkot. The way Nisar was bowling was very good. The way our batters managed him was great and that got us to a good total. Sialkot is on the right track and hopefully we go all the way."
Saad Nasim (Lahore Blues Captain): "Yeah, they played really well. They batted superbly in the last five overs, and Usama Mir bowled excellently in the second innings. We will discuss this batting collapse in the team meeting and aim to stage a comeback in the next game."
Player of the Match: Usama Mir
It's time for the post-match presentation.....
8:43 PM IST and 8:13 PM Local Time: Sialkot win by 110 runs! This has been drubbing of the highest quality from the Sialkot boys! They have hammered their opposition with both bat and ball. Simply sensational from them. Captain Usama Mir has led from front and has set an example of performance par excellence!
Lahore Blues won the toss and elected to field first. They were met with some aggressive batting from the Sialkot batters. Especially Abdullah Shafique at number 3. Lahore dismissed the openers cheaply, but Shafique ensured that the Sialkot side have a good powerplay as he used the field restrictions to his advantage.
He was joined by Hassan Nawaz, and both took the score to 130/2 in just 12.2 overs. That is when Shafique was dismissed for a well-made 57 and ended an 80 runs stand. Nawaz too was dismissed soon for 41. However, to the credit of Sialkot, their lower order made sure the good work is not wasted.
Mohsin Riaz and Ahsan Bhatti played some eye-catching strokes to help the side cross 200 and eventually end with 210/4. Yes, the wicket was a flat one but 210 was always going to be difficult to chase.
The chase started on an iffy note for Lahore Blues. They lost their first wicket for just 12. However, Umer Siddique and Hamza Zahoor staged a comeback and pushed the score to 67/1. That is when a collapse for the ages took place. It was orchestrated by Captain Usama Mir himself who brought himself into the attack in the 7th over.
The spin trio of Usama, Ahsan Bhatti and Sufiyan Muqeem clogged the batters and applied immense pressure. No loose balls were bowled and wickets kept on tumbling. Every batter would go for a big hit and would get caught on the ropes.
Usama bagged 6 wickets in all. From 67/1, Lahore Blues folded for just an even 100. They lost 9 wickets for 33 runs in 7 overs. Only Hamza and Umer scored runs in double figures. The pick of the bowlers were Usama Mir (6-8), Sufiyan Muqeem (2-26) and Ahsan Bhatti (1-25). In all it was a performance for the ages by Sialkot, and they would take immense confidence as there was simply no mistake from them today on the field.