LAHORE: Eight teams, Abbottabad, Faisalabad, defending champions Karachi Whites, Lahore Blues, Lahore Whites, Multan, Peshawar and Sialkot have qualified for the knockout stage of the Bank Alfalah Presents Inverex Solar Energy National T20 Cup 2024-25.
The quarter-finals, divided into two double headers, will be also played today, while the semi-finals and final are scheduled to take place on 26th and 27th March, respectively.
The 32-match group stage of the tournament concluded on Friday night as top two teams from each of the four groups secured their quarter-final berths.
At the end of group stage, Peshawar’s Sahibzada Farhan is leading the run scoring charts with a whopping sum of 414 runs across four games including two centuries and as many half-centuries. Karachi Blues’ Abdullah Fazal (231) and Lahore Whites’ Mohammad Faiq (224), the other two centurions in the tournament, are next on the list.
On the bowling front, Sialkot’s Hasan Ali sits atop the list with nine wickets across three games, while Islamabad’s Arsal Sheikh is second with eight scalps from four matches. Hussain Talat, Usama Mir, Mohammad Ismail, Kamran Afzal, and Mohammad Hamza have seven wickets each to their name.
In the quarter-final on Monday, Asif Ali’s Faisalabad will take on Iftikhar Ahmed’s Peshawar, while unbeaten Sialkot will fight it out with Lahore Blues for a semi-final spot.
Yasir Shah, Abbottabad captain said: “In the last edition, we finished runners-up, this time we aim to cross the finish line. The quarter-final will be a challenging game but we are well prepared for the task against Lahore Whites.”
Asif Ali, Faisalabad captain said, “It has been a pleasure leading Faisalabad in the tournament and we are pumped up for our quarter-final game against Peshawar. I feel we have the talent and skill to beat them and the support of local crowd will help us too.”
Saud Shakeel, Karachi Whites captain said, “We would like to continue our winning momentum into the knockout stage as well. The players, young and experienced alike, have responded very well to different challenges throughout the four group games and going ahead we are excited about defending our title.”
Hussain Talat, Lahore Blues captain said, “Apart from one game in the group stage our team has been spot on with the execution of the plans. To get to the next stage has been a real team effort with experienced players stepping up from time to time. I expect our game against Sialkot to be highly competitive.”
Saad Nasim, Lahore Whites captain said, “Topping the Group A will serve as a motivation for Lahore Whites to get the job done in knockout phase as well. Mohammad Faiq’s presence at the top of the order gives a lot of confidence, while among the bowlers Kamran Afzal and Ubaid Shah will play a crucial role.”
Zain Abbas, Multan captain said, “We have an exciting blend of experienced and young players at our disposal and we look forward to facing Karachi Whites, who will not be an easy opposition. I hope facing the defending champions in a crunch game will bring the best out of us.”
Iftikhar Ahmed, Peshawar captain said, “Our team has responded well to the pressure at various points in the group stage especially in the last game against Quetta, where we needed to win by a good margin and this will help us do well in the quarter-final against Faisalabad too.”
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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