It was a close contest between PCB Challengers and PCB Dynamites as the two sides locked horns against each other on December 1 in the final of the National Triangular T20 Women’s Cricket Championship hosted by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). The final was played at the iconic Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
Winning the toss and electing to bat first, PCB Challengers posted a competitive 133-7 in 20 overs. Kainat Hafeez top-scored with 27-ball 31 and her innings was laced with two boundaries and a six. Batting lower down the order, Sana Fatima (24 off 22) played a crucial role to help her team compile a challenging score on board. With the ball, it was PCB Dynamites’ Subhana Tariq, who was the pick of the bowlers. Though she went for more than nine runs per over in her four-over spell, she scalped three important wickets.
PCB Challengers complete a thrilling victory over PCB Dynamites to claim the Title. 🏆 pic.twitter.com/RyIZYlNMOX
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) December 1, 2020
In reply, PCB Dynamites gave a tough fight as they took the match all the way down the wire. Opener Nahida Khan (39 off 37) provided just the perfect start to the chase. Though the Dynamites lost their other opener Ayesha Zafar (1) cheaply, the middle order came together to consolidate the innings. Kainat Imtiaz scored a patient 30-ball 33, however, she failed to see her side home, as she remained unbeaten at the end of the chase. The Dynamites could only manage 126-6 in 20 overs and they fell short of just seven runs. Syeda Aroob Shah was the pick of the bowlers for Challengers as she pocketed 2-21 in her four overs, which included the wickets of Nahida Khan and Omaima Sohail.
Before the final, the two sides met on Sunday, which was a rehearsal of sorts, and in that match too, the Challengers had an upper hand over the Dynamites, as they comfortably won the match by five wickets.
I am a former cricketer having represented Mumbai University at All India University level. I was a part of MCA probables for the U-19 and U-23 age group. I have been an avid cricket writer for the last five years. Currently I am pursuing my Ph.D from IIT Bombay.