2nd semi-final, T10 League
Tamim fails to make it to the final
The Kerala Kings have already won the 1st semi-final. It was
just a matter of time before they could know who they are going to face in the first-ever
T10 League final.
In the 2nd semi-final, the Punjabi Legends faced the Pakhtoons. Punjabi Legends, captained by Misbah-ul-Haq, defeated Afridi’s Pakhtoons by 9 wickets.
Pakhtoons, the only team to win all of their matches in the
group stage and the playoffs, witnessed a hat-trick in their very first match.
They are also the only team to have scored over 100 runs in every match of this
tournament.
Batting first, Pakhtoons posted a massive total of 129 runs
on the scoreboard, while losing 4 wickets. They were a wicket down at 58 runs
when Tamim Iqbal got out for 17 runs.
Shahid Afridi played a splendid innings of 41, facing 17
deliveries. Meanwhile, Ahmed Shehzad picked up a half-century with an
astounding performance. He was dismissed by Dawlat Zadran at 58, before Fakhar Zaman got
picked up by the same bowler at just 4 runs. Ravi Bopara bagged the wickets of Tamim
and Afridi.
Chasing the target of 130 runs, Umar Akmal returned to the pavilion smashing a boundary and two over-boundaries. He scored 17 off 5 before getting dismissed by Umar Gul. Both Luke Ronchi and Shoaib Malik were unbeaten scoring 60 and 48 respectively.
Ronchi hit three 6s and seven 4s among the 34 deliveries he had faced, while Malik played 17 balls less and was a boundary short of his partner's feat. Their unbroken partnership of 100 runs ensured Pakhtoons' knockout .
Punjabi Legends will now face the Kerala Kings in the final game
of the contest tonight.