LAHORE: Imran Khan Cricket Stadium in Peshawar continued to prove to be a batters’ paradise as five half-centuries were scored on the third day of the National T20 Cup on Tuesday.

Ahsan Ali scored 67 to power Karachi Blues to 201 for four in the first match of the day. However, a whirlwind 81 not out from Kamran Ghulam and a quickfire 75 by Shahzaib Khan helped Abbottabad to achieve victory for the loss of two wickets with 20 balls to spare. Under lights, Multan posted 200 for six – thanks to Muhammad Shahzad’s 54 – and then restricted Lahore Blues to 197 for six despite Umar Siddiq’s brilliant 91.

Karachi Blues, put into bat, posted 201 for four with Ahsan Ali and Jahanzaib Sultan adding 88 runs for the opening wicket. Ahsan scored 67 from 36 balls with seven fours and four sixes, while Jahanzaib’s 29-ball 42 included two fours and three sixes. Saad Baig (26, 23b, 1 x 4, 1 x 6) and Usman Khan (39, 25b, 7 x 4) then put on 66 runs for the third wicket to ensure Karachi Blues posted a score they could defend.

Nonetheless, Kamran Ghulam and Shahzaib Khan had different ideas. Kamran scored 81 not out from 42 balls with 11 fours and two sixes, while Shahzaib belted 11 fours and three sixes in a 38-ball 75. The two batters added 115 runs for the second wicket.

After Shahzaib departed at the score of 133, Khushdil Shah joined Kamran and the two put on 70 runs for the unfinished third wicket as Abbottabad achieved victory with more than three overs to spare. Khushdil remained not out on 38 that came off 16 balls and included four fours and two sixes.

In the evening match, Aamer Yamin successfully defended 11 runs in the final over to help Multan beat Lahore Blues by three runs. Aamer, who had also scored a six-ball 24 not out with three fours and two sixes to help Multan reach 200 for six, gave away 29 runs from his four overs and picked up a wicket as Lahore Blues finished at 197 for six.

Other star performers for Multan were Muhammad Shahzad, who scored a 40-ball 54 with three fours and four sixes, and Arafat Minhas, who produced a good all-round performance. With the bat, Arafat scored 35 vital runs from 17 balls with two fours and two sixes, and later picked up two crucial wickets, conceding 23 runs from his four overs.

Lahore Blues’ run-chase was led by opener Umar Siddiq, who scored an impressive 91 from 51 balls, including 13 fours and three sixes. Ali Razzaq was the other batter to shine, scoring 45 from 26 balls with two fours and four sixes.

After Lahore Blues had slipped to 99 for four, Umar and Ali added 79 runs for the fifth wicket.

Scores in brief:

Match 7 (Group B) – Abbottabad beat Karachi Blues by eight wickets

KARACHI BLUES: 201-4, 20 overs (Ahsan Ali 67, Jahanzaib Sultan 42, Usman Khan 39, Saad Baig 26; Shadab Khan 2-32)

ABBOTTABAD: 203-2, 16.4 overs (Kamran Ghulam 81 not out, Shahzaib Khan 75, Khushdil Shah 38 not out)

PLAYER OF THE MATCH: Kamran Ghulam (Abbottabad)

Match 8 (Group B) – Multan beat Lahore Blues by three runs

MULTAN: 200-6, 20 overs (Muhammad Shahzad 54, Arafat Minhas 35, Bismillah Khan 27, Aamer Yamin 24 not out; Mohammad Rizwan 3-39)

LAHORE BLUES: 197-6, 20 overs (Umar Siddiq 91, Ali Razzaq 45, Imran Butt 20; Arafat Minhas 2-23, Sirajuddin 2-45)

PLAYER OF THE MATCH: Aamer Yamin (Multan)

WEDNESDAY FIXTURES (GROUP A):

Faisalabad vs Bahawalpur (4.15pm)

Karachi Whites vs Peshawar (9.15pm