Ton-up Kashif leads Rawalakot Hawks to KPL Final

By Muhammad JuniadPublished On 06 Jan 2023

Young Kashif Ali scored a brilliant ton to lead Rawalakot Hawks to victory against Mirpur Royals in the second Eliminator of the Kashmir Premier League (KPL) Monday.

Chasing a mammoth target of 237, Kashif scored unbeaten 114 off 52 balls to ensure Hawks place in the final of the inaugural edition of the tournament.

They were off to a bad start losing three early wickets. Opener Umar Amin went without troubling the scorers, while opener Bismillah Khan (15 off 10) and batsman Mohammad Imran (13 off 11) could not get going.

Batsman Hussain Talat played a brilliant knock, scoring 51 runs off 21 balls before falling to bowler Salman Irshad.

Skipper Shahid Afridi (19 off 13) was removed by pacer Sameen Gul next as the game headed into the final stage.

Kashif Ali did not let the opportunity go to waste to drive his side over the line with four wickets and two balls to spare.

Earlier, Mirpur Royals were off to a great start batting first. Opener Sharjeel Khan went after the bowlers in explosive fashion.

The other batsmen from the Royals’ side could only support a brilliant knock by Sharjeel as the opener dominated the entire innings with his impeccable power-hitting.

Batsmen Mukhtar Ahmed (21 off 17), Shoaib Malik (15 off 12) and Mohammad Akhlaq (29 off 21) provided support for the opener, who scored 141 runs off just 63 balls.

Pacer Zaman Khan took two wickets while skipper Shahid Afridi took one wicket for the Rawalakot Hawks.a