Khurram Shahzad and Noman guided Galfar Al Misnad into the final of the QCA Twenty20 Cricket Tournament with a facile 66-run victory over Tusker Club.
Batting first, in the Division ‘A’ semi-final at the West Bay grounds, Galfar Al Misnad were four down for 83 in 15 overs. But some lusty long-handle batting by Shahzad and Noman took them to an impressive 152 for four through an unbroken 69 runs partnership.
Shahzad fired four sixes and two fours in his 21-ball 44, while Noman also smashed two sixes and as many fours to get 27 off 19 balls. Among the other top-order batsmen, only Faisal applied and got 25 with two fours.
During the chase, Tusker Club had lots of early problems as they were reeling three down for nine. They could never get any breather and slumped eventually to 86 all out in 17 overs. Awais, with three for 17 and Noman, who had two for 9, bowled superbly.
Himanshu and Shaheen also picked two each to keep pressure on the rivals.
Tamoor and Murad split six scalps and led Warriors Club to a facile five-wickets triumph against United Challengers.
Their rich haul shot United Challengers out for just 69. Warriors Club raced to the win in 10.5 overs with Asad Bohram cracking four boundaries in his 33 not out.
In the Division B, Selex and Qatar Super Kings advanced to the final, while Hadico and Gladiators will clash for the Division C title.
Qatar Super Kings had to battle hard to hold their innings despite a modest target of 93 against Commercial Bank Qatar Blue.
After Kaleem waged a lone fight and made 42 before retiring hurt, CBQ Blue rallied spiritedly and picked seven wickets before Qatar Super Kings managed to come through the crisis.
Benin, who made 27, and Sivalingam batted well and saw off the challenge of CBQ Blue. Sivalingam, after sharing six wickets with Sinu, contributed a crucial 16 for his team.
Sanal smashed two sixes and four boundaries in his splendid 54, which pushed Selex to a healthy 178 for seven.
Ashif Umar hit 37 in 24 balls, including five boundaries. Salem and Shehab, who grabbed three wickets each, made a fine attempt to foil Selex’s chase.
Both Gladiators and Hadico scripted impressive wins in the semi-finals, beating Trinity Club and Karwar Indians,
respectively.
A three-wicket haul by Faiz sent Karwar Indians crashing to 101 for nine and Deon struck a
six and seven fours to set up a four-wicket triumph for Gladiators.
With Atique (34 in 40 balls) and Hasan (33 in 23 balls with two sixes and two fours) coming up with fine knocks, Hadico put up a tough target of 156 for their opponents.
Faizu’s fighting 42 and useful 29 by Zainu Trinity raised hopes for Trinity Club but they could not pull it off as Numan and Jaggu took three wickets apiece to restrict their pursuit at 148 in 18.2 overs.
Galfar Al Misnad’s Khurram Shahzad (left) and Warriors’ Asad Bohram.
