DOHA: HBK and Al Fardan Exchange Club will clash for the top honours of the Qatar Airways Cricket Division B Tournament, organised by the Qatar Cricket Association.
Both HBK and Al Fardan Exchange Club posted contrasting wins over their respective rivals in the semi-finals at the West Bay Grounds.
Facing a stiff 164-run target against Masters Club, HBK secured the triumph in the 25th and final over for the loss of seven wickets. Asantha smashed a fine 60 and took a wicket to win the Man of the Match award.
Asad (25), Dasun (20), Asitha (15) and Nimantha (15) were other vital scorers, besides Asantha. Gayan got two wickets, while Khadeer, Sajeet and Savadr got a scalp apice.
Earlier, Masters Club reached a fighting target of 163 for in 25 overs. Rabie (42) and Khadeer (31) provided the necessary support to the innings. Aman (18) and Tauseef (17) also played useful knocks.
In contrast to their extremely tough quarter-final against Khan XI, Al Fardan Exchange Club earned an easy 23-run triumph against Centurion in another semi-final.
With Arslan (55) hammering a fine 55, Al Fardan piled up 190 for eight in 23 overs. Irfan Shahid (23) and Hussain (22) were other good contributors to take the score close to 200-mark. Sameer (3 wickets) and Aftab grabbed five wickets between them.
Kashif scalped four players, while Irshad and Ramdan shared four wickets to shoot out the rivals for 167. Shareef (36), Afzal (32), Arshad (29) and Mehboob (19) attempted hard to keep their team into the contention.
The Division C final will feature Warriors Club against Al Rayyan Sports Club.
Warriors Club outclassed Chittagong Club by 100 runs after Ali Najeeb and Kushal struck second half-century in a row. Najeeb clobbered 82 and Kushal cracked 63, which lifted the winners to 218 for six in 25 overs. Muzammil, Iqbal and Shakib all bagged two wickets each.
Chittagong Club surrendered easily and could make only 118 in 20 overs. Sandeep Kothari (3 wickets) and Upul (3 wickets) led the downfall of the opponents. Shareef also picked two.
Ibrahim collected a second Man of the Match performance to spark Al Rayyan Sports Club to a three-wicket victory against Chiyoda Al Mana Club. Sajjad and Ibrahim both grabbed three wickets each and Muasif dismissed two players. Ismaeel was the only player to shine and get 24 runs.
Al Rayyan Club, batting first, needed only 17 overs to overhaul the target. Mukhtar (26) and Wahid (22) were the principal scorers. Riaz and Ismail bagged three wickets each.
THE PENINSULA
