KARACHI: The fifth round of the National Women’s T20 Tournament 2025 lit up Karachi with powerful performances from two of Pakistan’s rising stars — Sidra Amin and Sadaf Shamas — as Stars and Challengers registered important wins in their respective matches on Tuesday.
At the National Bank Stadium, Stars were in early trouble at 19-3 after choosing to bat against Conquerors. But their captain Sidra Amin, currently the tournament’s top scorer, delivered yet another match-winning performance.
Batting at No. 3, Sidra held the innings together with a sensational 78 off 58 balls, smashing 7 fours and 3 sixes, and carried her team to 145-8 in 20 overs. She added a crucial 34-run partnership with Sidra Nawaz and a game-saving 68-run stand with Waheeda Akhtar for the ninth wicket, rescuing the side from a collapse at 74-6.
For Conquerors, Fatima Sana claimed 3 wickets for 34 runs, playing a key role with the ball.
Chasing 146, Conquerors stumbled early, losing both openers to Waheeda Akhtar, and Hafsa Khalid to Anosha Nasir, managing just 14 runs on the board. A recovery came from Najiha Alvi (39* off 44) and Fatima Sana (38 off 24) who built a 60-run partnership, but once again Anosha struck to remove Fatima, turning the tide.
Late efforts by Syeda Aroob Shah (13 off 8) weren’t enough, and Conquerors fell short by 23 runs. Waheeda, Anosha, and Neelam Mushtaq took two wickets each.
Over at the Oval Academy Ground, Challengers defeated Strikers in a close contest thanks to an all-round performance from Sadaf Shamas.
Opening the innings, Sadaf smashed 29 off 23 balls with five boundaries, adding 47 runs with Shawaal Zulfiqar (22 off 24). At No. 3, Aliya Riaz brought momentum with 35 off 29, including two sixes, building a 45-run stand with Natalia Parvaiz.
- Lower-order cameos from Gull Rukh (14* off 11) and Tasmia Rubab (10 off 6) lifted Challengers to 145-7.
- For Strikers, Diana Baig and Zunash Abdul Sattar impressed, picking up three wickets each.
In reply, Strikers were rocked early by Rameen Shamim and Sadaf, losing openers with just 25 on the board. But Eyman Fatima, in stunning form, led the recovery with a classy 56 off 47 balls (nine fours), building an 85-run partnership with Zoofishan Ayyaz (30 off 27).
Just as the game tilted in Strikers’ favor, Sadaf returned to break the stand, finishing with 3-31. Rameen also bowled economically, taking 2-18, helping Challengers restrict Strikers to 138-7, clinching the win by 7 runs.
