Pakistan Champions One-Day Cup: Lions Pakistan have dealt a huge blow in their conquest for title, as Shaheen Shah Afridi's side suffer elimination in the Eliminator 2 at the hands of Markhors Pakistan by virtue of them finishing on top of the table. The decision comes in afterrain prevented any sort of play to take place on Friday, and the match has now been abandoned.
With the result, Markhors Pakistan are set to take on Panthers Pakistan in the final of the Pakistan Champions One-Day Cup 2024 on Sunday.
Before the start of the tournament, the rule book clearly stated the teams finishing above their opponents will be handed the advantage, and Markhors Pakistan were arguably the best team in the entire tournament, as they finished on top of the table with 4 wins and a loss.
However, what makes this matter even more interesting is the fact that Markhors' only defeat of the season came in their last league fixture, which was against the very same opponents they have just eliminated in Eliminator 2 — Lions Pakistan, which was their first and only win of the season.
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Markhors Pakistan are by far the strongest on-paper side in the tournament. Led by Mohammad Rizwan, the side boasts one of the finest batters, bowlers, all-rounders of the country consisting the likes of Fakhar Zaman, Naseem Shah, Iftikhar Ahmed, and some of the not-so-popular household names who are extremely effective such as Kamran Ghulam, Abdul Samad, and Zahid Mahmood.
The fixture was the the inaugural match in the history of the tournament and will now be the last match of the first-ever edition of Pakistan Champions One-Day Cup. Markhors hammered Panthers in that fixture, as they registered a massive 150-run win.
Therefore, Panthers Pakistan will be in search of a miracle to pull-off an unlikely win against Markhors Pakistan.