Lions 263 for 9 (Daniyal 65*, Taha 47, Yamin 46, Ubaid 3-46, Amin 2-35, Sadaqat 2-50) beat Stallions 251 (Yasir 39, Khushdil 3-40, Daniyal 3-59) by 12 runs
An all-round show from Ahmed Daniyal and a three-wicket haul from Khushdil Shah helped Lions keep their campaign alive, as they held on for a 12-run victory in the Champions One-Day Cup Eliminator against Stallions in Faisalabad. Lions will now face Markhors in the second Eliminator on Friday, with the winner facing Panthers in Sunday’s final.
Opting to bat, Lions were in a spot of bother at 43 for 3, before Sharoon Siraj (38) and Mohammad Taha revived the innings with a 77-run partnership. However, Stallions kept chipping away, resulting in another slide for Lions, who went from 120 for 3 to 140 for 7 in the space of five overs. With Lions staring at the possibility of a sub-200 total, Daniyal and Aamer Yamin launched a counterattack, their 81-run eighth-wicket stand eventually guiding the team to 263 for 9. While Yamin was run out for 46, Daniyal remained unbeaten on 65 off 59 balls, with two fours and five sixes. For Stallions, seamer Ubaid Shah was the pick of the bowlers, ending with 3 for 46.
Stallions began their 264 chase well, courtesy an opening stand of 64 between Yasir Khan (39) and Maaz Sadaqat (27). However, three wickets in successive overs saw the team stumble to 68 for 3, with Khushil accounting for both Sadaqat and Adil Amin. Another threatening partnership – 69 for the fourth wicket between Tayyab Tahir and Hussain Talat – appeared to give Stallions a way back into the game, but Daniyal broke through to halt their momentum in the 30th over.
Stallions captain Mohammad Haris and Jahanad Khan provided a late surge, but Lions stayed ahead with regular wickets. Stallions needed 23 off the last two overs, but they only had two wickets in hand, and Lions finally bundled them out for 251. Khushdil finished with 3 for 40 while Daniyal took 3 for 59.
