KARACHI: For the second day running the evening fixture in the Cool & Cool National T20 Cup turned out to be a nail-biter as Islamabad edged their neighbours Rawalpindi by two runs at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi.

Following Lahore Blues’ one-run win against Lahore Whites on the opening day, Sunday’s afternoon match saw the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) canter to a comprehensive victory over Peshawar.

But the evening clash between the twin cities provided an extraordinary innings from Pakistan Test opener Shan Masood, who had never passed 36 in his previous 23 T20 knocks.

The 28-year-old left-hander, who normally takes a pedestrian approach to his batting in five-day cricket, produced a contrasting performance as he struck 83 from 52 balls, while striking 12 boundaries and one six, to enable Islamabad amass 175-4 after Rawalpindi skipper Umar Amin chose to field first.

Shan and Nauman Anwar, the latter overcoming a wrist injury in the initial stage of the match, used the Powerplay overs to good effect by putting on a superb stand of 61 that broken at the start of the seventh over by slow left-armer Mohammad Asghar who had Nauman caught for 17-ball 33 (five fours and one six).

Saad Ali celebrated his selection by Quetta Gladiators for the third Pakistan Super League with a breezy 18-ball cameo of 22 as the talented left-handed helped Shan add 49 for the third wicket when Test seamer Mohammad Abbas dismissed him in the 16th over.

Man-of-the-match Shan looked on course for a century but departed in the 18th over.

Rawalpindi lost an early wicket — that of Ahsan Ali (4) — in the first over of the chase when lanky Pakistan speedster Mohammad Irfan held a return catch. Umar and Zain Abbas then combined to put on the match on even keel in a fine left-handed partnership of 81.

But once the captain was gone — via an injudicious attempt to send over the midwicket boundary with a wild heave against spinner Raza Hasan — Islamabad stormed back to take control. Umar’s 36-ball 56 included eight fours and a brace of sixes.

On the way, Islamabad also had a slice of luck favouring them when bowler Adil Amin flung his left hand to touch the ball that ricocheted onto the stumps. As a result Iftikhar Ahmed, who was backing up at the non-striker’s end, was found out of his crease.

Mohammad Nawaz, who clobbered 43 off 23 balls with three fours and two sixes, and his unrelated namesake Nasir Nawaz infused some life in the death overs with a flurry of boundaries.

Nasir (20 off 12 balls) almost sealed a dramatic result in Rawalpindi’s favour when he hoisted out-of-favour Test paceman Rahat Ali for six to leave his needing a boundary for victory on the last ball. But Rahat — who curiously sported a No. 9 shirt bearing Imad Wasim’s first name — conceded just a single.

In the day’s first game Fata had enough ammunition up their sleeves to maul Peshawar by six wickets with seven deliveries to spare.

Put into bat by Hammad Azam, Peshawar never managed meaningful partnerships after losing veteran Riffatullah Mohmand cheaply for one in the third over.

It was left to Musadiq Ahmed to give Peshawar a respectable with a feisty half-century as he blasted an undefeated 51 off only 27 balls after arriving at the fall of skipper Mohammad Rizwan’s wicket in the ninth over. Rizwan made 22 off 18 balls, while Naved Yasin scored a26-ball 30.

Awais Zia, the man-of-the-match, led Fata’s charge with a 32-ball 50, featuring eight fours and a six, before Hammad completed the last rites with three sixes in an unbeaten 38 off 27 balls.

Sunday’s results:

Islamabad beat Rawalpindi by two runs.

ISLAMABAD 175-4 in 20 overs (Shan Masood 83, Nauman Anwar 33, Saad Ali 22; Mohammad Abbas 2-32); RAWALPINDI 173-5 in 20 overs (Umar Amin 56, Mohammad Nawaz 43 not out, Zain Abbas 33, Nasir Nawaz 20 not out; Mohammad Irfan 2-31).

Fata beat Peshawar by six wickets.

PESHAWAR 164-6 in 20 overs (Musadiq Ahmed 51 not out, Naved Yasin 30, Israrullah 28, Mohammad Rizwan 22; Usama Mir 2-24, Ahmed Jamal 2-30); FATA 166-4 in 18.5 overs (Awais Zia 50, Hammad Azam 38, Khushdil Shah 24, Mukhtar Ahmed 21).

Monday’s fixtures: Lahore Blues vs Faisalabad (12:00noon); Karachi Whites vs Lahore Whites (4:00pm).

Published in Dawn, November 13th, 2017