Lahore Region clinched the title of the U-19 National Women’s Cricket Championship after thrashing Rawalpindi Region by eight wickets in the final here at the Country Club Muridke Ground A on Sunday. After batting first, Rawalpindi were allowed just 119 runs for the loss of six wickets in 20 overs. Aliya Riaz with her 33 runs off 30 balls helped the Rawalpindi gain strong footing. She achieved the score with the help of six fours and also got a perfect support at the other end from Zara Iqbal 28. Namra Imran and Sania Ashraf halted their runs flow by taking two wickets each for four and 19 runs respectively.
In reply, Lahore reached the target for the loss of two wickets with six balls to spare. Lahore got Farheen Mahmood to do the needful with her unconquered 43 runs off 62 balls studded with two fours. Sidra Nawaz with 28 and Maham Rafiq with 20 got the target for Lahore. Farheen Mahmood was declared the player of the match. Kausar Shah and Tassaduq Jamal were umpires while Ashraf Ali act as match referee and Azhar Hussain was scorer. The winning team Lahore Region earned Rs 75,000 while runners-up Rawalpindi Region bagged Rs 50,000. The player of the match Farheen Mahmood (Lahore) received Rs 2,000 while the player of the tournament Areeb Shamaim (Multan) got Rs 10,000. Likewise the best batter of the tournament Fazeela Akhlaq (Islamabad), the best bowler Namra Imran (Lahore), the best fielder Ayesha Siddiqua (Quetta) and the best wicketkeeper S Marium Bukhari (Karachi) received Rs 10,000 each from the chief guest PCB Chairman Ch Zaka Ashraf.
Scores: Rawalpindi Region U-19 – 119-6 in 20 overs: (Aliya Riaz 33, 30 balls, 6x4s, Zara Iqbal 28, 47 balls, 3x4s, Ayesha Furqan 15, 9 balls, 2×4, Namra Imran 2-4, Sania Ashraf 2-19) v Lahore Region U-19 – 120-2 in 19 overs: (Farheen Mahmood 43*, 62 balls, 2x4s, Sidra Nawaz 28, 26 balls, Maham Rafiq 20, 26 balls, 2×4)
Result: Lahore Region U-19 won by 8 wickets.
Toss: Lahore Region U-19
Umpires: Kausar Shah and Tassaduq Jamal
Match Referee: Ashraf Ali
Official Scorer: Azhar Hussain.
