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       FAISALABAD: Abbottabad and Multan advanced to the semi-finals of the National T20 Cup as they beat Lahore Whites and Karachi Whites, respectively on Sunday night here at the Iqbal Stadium.

       In the first quarter-final, Abbottabad overcame Lahore Whites on the back of Kamran Ghulam’s unbeaten half-century (58 not out off 41, six fours and two sixes), which helped them knock down the 131-run target in 17.5 overs.

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       After opting to field first, Abbottabad bagged two early wickets after which Lahore Whites’ skipper Muhammad Akhlaq steered the innings with a 49-ball 59 hitting seven fours and one six.

       After Akhlaq’s departure in the 17th over at 96-5, Kamran Afzal (25 not out off 14, three fours and a six) and Mohammad Azeem Dar (19 not out off 24) stitched a 34-run unbeaten stand to help their team notch a fighting total.

       Abbottabad’s Khalid Usman picked up two wickets for 15 runs. In turn, player of the match Kamran kept the Abbottabad innings intact after walking in at 12-1, jotting a 54-run second-wicket stand with Shahzaib Khan (28 off 33, two fours and two sixes) and a 49-run partnership for fourth wicket with Afaq Ahmed (31 off 21, two fours and two sixes) to take the team over the line.

       In the second, quarter-final Multan successfully defended their 155-run total as they edged out the defending champions Karachi Whites by a mere seven runs to secure a semi-final berth.

       After Multan won the toss and elected to bat first, opening batter Zeeshan Ashraf headlined their batting effort with a sublime 60 off 34 balls hitting nine fours and three sixes before departing in the 10th over.

       Number-five batter Muhammad Shahzad (36 off 25, four fours and a six), who walked in at 81-3, stitched a 24-run stand with Arafat Minhas and then a valuable 37-run partnership with Humayun Altaf, which pushed Multan past 150-run mark.

       In turn, Karachi lost their first three wickets for just 18 runs in 4.5 overs before Haroon Arshad (42 off 29, four fours and a six) and Mohammad Taha (36 off 30, three fours and two sixes) rebuilt the innings with a 79-run stand.

       Saad Baig, who walked in at 98-5, struck a 19-ball 25 including two fours and one six but in vain as they fell seven runs short.

       For Multan, pacer Mohammad Ismail was pick of the bowlers with figures of 3-34, while Faisal Akram picked up two wickets. Wasim Akram Jr, Ali Majid and Arafat Minhas dismissed one batter each.

       Published in Dawn, March 25th, 2025