Saud Shakeel led the provincial side to their maiden National T20 title

Karachi Dolphins have been a dominant force in the National T20 Cup, Pakistan’s premium domestic T20 tournament, since its inception in 2005.

Cricket fans in Sindh were mostly disappointed as they could never lift the trophy, despite maintaining one of the most star-studded sides in the tournament and being one of the most consistent teams, ending at the second spot on six different occasions.

Though three teams from Sindh used to feature in the premier domestic T20 tournament, Dolphins, Karachi Zebras and Hyderabad Hawks, fans always looked up to the Dolphins to win the title.

Dolphins have been represented by household names like Moin Khan, Shahid Afridi, Mohammad Sami, Fawad Alam, Sarfraz Ahmed, Sohail Khan, Anwar Ali, Asad Shafiq and many others.

The cricket enthusiasts in the province tasted their first victory when in 2015-2016, under the leadership of Khalid Latif, Karachi Blues defeated the Karachi Whites in the final.

In 2019-2020, the format changed and provincial teams started competing in the tournament. Just five teams participated in the new format, and Sindh still could not make their mark.

However, this year’s National T20 Cup just concluded and under the captaincy of Saud Shakeel, the team finally gave the people in the province a reason to celebrate when Sindh won their maiden T20 title.

In the absence of their seasoned campaigners like Khurram Manzoor and Asad Shafiq, youngsters stepped up and helped their inexperienced captain to create history.

Journey

Sindh did not have the ideal start in the tournament as they lost three of the six games of the Rawalpindi leg. They made a decent comeback when the teams travelled to Multan, winning two key matches to qualify for the semi-finals.

Afterwards, Sindh stood victorious against Central Punjab in the semi-final, beating them by five wickets while chasing a big total of 180 runs.

A charged Sindh team met an in-form Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) in the final, which had qualified to fight for the gold after overcoming Northern by five wickets.

The Saud-led team made the final of the tournament a one-sided affair as they booked KPK for merely 140 runs, courtesy of Sohail Khan’s four wickets for just 18 runs.

Meanwhile, Sindh were given an explosive start by their openers Sharjeel Khan and Saim Ayub, who scored 70 runs in the first seven overs.

They chased down the total in 14.4 overs with eight wickets in hand.

Rising stars

The best thing about Sindh’s triumph was their young guns firing just at the right time.

The pick of the batters for the champions was Saim Ayub, a 20-year-old left-handed opening batsman, who showed immense potential and looked to have a promising future.

Ayub opened the innings with Sharjeel, who is known for aggressive batting. However, the youngster overshadowed the experienced batter with his skilful stroke play and power-hitting.

The former Pakistan U16 captain scored 416 runs at an average of 34.66 with a strike rate of 155.2. The young man with a lean body surprised everyone with his six-hitting ability and eventually emerged as the highest six-hitter of the competition with 19 maximums.

On the other hand, another find of the tournament has been Omair Bin Yousuf.

The right-handed batter impressed everyone as he came out to bat at the tricky no 4 spot and played with absolute authority.

The 23-year-old batted in seven innings, where he scored 206 runs at an impressive average of 51.50 at a healthy strike rate of 137.33.

Keeping the Pakistan cricket team’s middle-order woes in view, Yousuf is surely someone to keep an eye on.

Meanwhile, 26-year-old fast bowler Asif Mehmood played a vital role in Sindh’s success with his nine wickets in six matches.

Seasoned campaigners’ role

As budding cricketers played a vital role in Sindh’s success, their experienced players also contributed massively to the journey.

The 38-year-old Sohail Khan, who has represented Karachi Dolphins in the past as well, showed his class yet again. He dismissed 21 batters with an economy rate of 7.89 throughout the campaign to become the highest wicket-taker in the tournament.

Meanwhile, leg-spinner Zahid Mahmood was also impressive in the event as he got 15 scalps at an outstanding economy rate of 7.00.

Former Pakistan skipper Sarfraz Ahmed also played a few crucial knocks in the tournament, scoring 209 runs at an average of 29.85 with a strike rate of 129.81.

Bright prospects

Sahibzada Farhan has been a consistent performer in the domestic circuit. He once again showed glimpses of his ability during the 20th edition of the National T20 Cup as he emerged as the highest scorer of the campaign.

KPK’s opening batter piled up 429 runs, with the help of a century and a half-century, in 12 innings with a strike rate of 132.40.

On the other hand, Central Punjab’s batter Tayyab Tahir was a treat to watch throughout the championship.

The right-handed batter was the third-highest scorer after Sahibzada and Ayub. He contributed 413 runs for his team in 11 innings with an admirable strike rate of 138.59.

Incredible feats

Though Salman Ali Agha is known for his batting, it was his part-time off-spinners that did the trick for his team, Southern Punjab.

Agha picked five wickets for 10 runs against Central Punjab while defending 166 runs. The Shoaib Malik-led team was bundled up on 79 runs in 14.3 overs, courtesy of the Southern Punjab captain’s brilliance.

His five-for was the only five-wicket hall of the whole event.

Meanwhile, Sindh’s pacer Asif registered the only hat-trick of the season.

He dismissed KPK’s Niaz Khan, Mohammad Sarwar Afridi and Mohammad Imran on three consecutive deliveries in the last over of the inning to achieve the feat.