The Panthers didn’t get off to a great start as Mohammad Naveed got rid of Mohammad Shahzad in the very first over. Ihsanullah Janat and Cameron Delport perished in quick succession as well. Rahmanullah Gurbaz fell prey to Karim Sadiq. Waqar Salamkheil nipped out Samiullah Shenwari and Shahid Afridi in the 10th over to reduce the Panthers to 69/6 in 9.5 overs.
At the other end, Sikandar Raza put his head down and scored 51 runs from 42 deliveries with the help of five boundaries. He was dismissed by Naveed in the 18th over, but the knock was good enough to take Paktia to a respectable score of 127 in 18.2 overs. Isuru Udana contributed with a valuable 23 at a run-a-ball and supported Raza with a 54-run partnership.
