Shadab Khan scored 46 in 27 as KP went down to a team effort from Northern
Northern 181 for 7 (Nawaz 51, Shadab 46, Shaheen 2-30) beat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 167 for 8 (Iftikhar 58, Rauf 3-31) by 14 runs
A whirlwind 90-run fifth-wicket partnership between Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan helped Northern recover from the loss of four early wickets to beat Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by 14 runs.
Table-toppers KP put Northern in to bat first, and Shaheen Afridi put them under immediate pressure in a glorious first over in which he removed Ali Imran and Haider Ali. Northern rebuilt with a 50-run third-wicket stand, only to lose another couple in quick succession. But they stuck to their plans, with the in-form Nawaz and Shadab launching an impressive counter-attack, with the next 90 runs coming in nine overs as Nawaz smashed a 34-ball 51, his second half-century in three games. Shadab’s 27-ball 46 was the accompaniment, and thanks to a handy cameo from Asif Ali, Northern got to 181.
KP’s response lacked the necessary intent required to chase down a steep total for much of the first ten overs, hampered by the loss of Mohammad Rizwan and Sahibzada Farhan early. With the asking rate rising, Iftikhar Ahmed brought his side back into the contest with a glorious half-century, but lack of support from the other end ensured KP were always a touch too far behind the game. And once Haris Rauf, who starred with three wickets, had Iftikhar hole out, all doubts vanished, with a clinical Northern closing out an impressive win.