KARACHI – Stars secured their third win in the fifth round of the National Women’s T20 Tournament 2024-25 at the National Bank Stadium on Tuesday afternoon.
Challengers’ Sadaf Shamas (3-31 & 29) showcased all-around skills to inspire her team to a hard-fought win over Strikers at the Oval Academy Ground.
At the National Bank Stadium, Stars slipped to 19-3 after opting to bat first before Sidra, batting at no.3, took it upon herself to rebuild the innings and steer her team to 145-8 in 20 overs.
Sidra, who struck seven fours and three sixes in her 58-ball 78 and currently leads the batting charts with 249 runs, forged a 34-run stand with Sidra Nawaz (11) before three quick wickets pushed the Stars to 74-6. At this juncture, Sidra, in alliance with Waheeda Akhtar (24), collected 68 runs for the ninth wicket.
For the Conquerors, Fatima Sana picked up three wickets for 34 runs.
In turn, Waheeda removed both the Conquerors’ opening batters, while Hafsa Khalid fell to Anosha Nasir with just 14 runs on the board. Najiha Alvi (39 not out) and Fatima Sana (38) staged a counterattack with a 60-run stand, but Anosha returned to dismiss the latter, tilting the balance back in Stars’ favour.
Syeda Aroob Shah’s eight-ball 13, including a six and a four, wasn’t enough as Conquerors fell 23 runs short. Anosha, Waheeda and Neelam Mushtaq dismissed two batters each.
In the other game, Challengers posted 145-7 against Strikers after being asked to bat first. Opening duo of Sadaf Shamas (29) and Shawaal Zulfiqar (22) stitched a 47-run stand.
Batting at no.3, Aliya Riaz struck two sixes and a solitary four to score 35 runs off 29 balls, while also partnering with Natalia Parvaiz (22) for a 45-run stand, which took Challengers to 111-3. Gull Rukh hit one six in her 11-ball 14 not out, while Tasmia Rubab chipped in with two boundaries as he finished 10 off six.
Diana Baig and right-arm leg spinner Zunash Abdul Sattar snapped three wickets each.
Strikers’ pursuit of the target was dented by opposition skipper Rameen Shamim and Sadaf, who eked out the opening batters with 25 runs on the board. Eyman Fatima continued her fine batting form as she registered her second half-century, as she took her team out of trouble in an 85-run alliance with Zoofishan Ayyaz (30).
Eyman, who has so far collected 151 runs in four outings, departed for a fluent 47-ball 56 including nine fours as Challengers fought back to restrict the Strikers to 138-7 with Sadaf taking 3-31. Rameen picked up two wickets for 18 runs in her four overs.
