National Women’s One-Day Cup Set to Thrill Faisalabad Fans

The National Women’s One-Day Cup kicks off in Faisalabad this Friday. Five squads are set to battle, but only one will lift the trophy.

The action stretches across 21 games. Each side meets the others twice before the top two march into the final. Few saw this coming after a quiet buildup, but the atmosphere shifted the moment the teams rolled into the Iqbal Stadium. 

Stars arrive as the defending champions. They beat Conquerors by five wickets last season, a result that still stings in the rival camp. To be fair, both groups have moved on, yet you can sense that tiny spark whenever players from those squads cross paths. 

All five teams will train at the Iqbal Stadium and the PCB High Performance Centre before the final squads shrink from twenty to fifteen. Coaches looked busy on Thursday, pacing between nets and team huddles, searching for that perfect combination. Honestly, you could see the urgency on some faces.

The total prize money is PKR 3.55 million. The champions will take home PKR 1.5 million, and the runners-up get PKR 1 million. Every match also gives PKR 25,000 to the best performer, and the tournament’s top player earns PKR 200,000. 

Every match will be staged at the Iqbal Stadium and the High Performance Centre Ground; only a single fixture on 22 November between Challengers and Strikers will shift to the Jawad Club Cricket Ground. A small move, but these small shifts sometimes produce surprises. 

The Five National Women’s One-Day Cup Teams Revealed

Conquerors

Fatima Sana (captain), Sidra Nawaz (wicketkeeper), Aleena Masood, Saira Jabeen, Lubna Behram, Umm-e-Hani, Iram Javed, Maham Anees, Farzana Farooq (wicketkeeper), Aqsa Bibi, Sabiha Noor, Maheen Irfan, Amber Kainat, Gull Feroza, Eisha Naeem, Esha Rahupoto, Zunash Abdul Sattar, Ayesha Bilal, Saima Malik, and Sidra Nawaz

Strikers

Nashra Sundhu (captain), Noreen Yaqoob, Rabia Rani, Amna Bibi, Aliya Riaz, Laiba Fatima, Humna Bilal, Zaib-un-Nisa Niaz, Javeria Siddique, Shawaal Zulfiqar, Areesha Noor, Samina Aftab, Mahnoor Aftab, Rehmat Noreen, Laiba Nasir, Aliza Sabir, Saiqa Riaz, Najiha Alvi (wicketkeeper), Sania Rasheed (wicketkeeper), and Ghulam Fatima

Challengers

Rameen Shamim (captain), Memoona Tipu, Ramama Nazir, Fatima Shahid, Tania Saeed, Neha Sharmin Nadeem, Eyman Fatima, Waheeda Akhtar, Aleena Shah, Huraina Sajjad, Sadaf Shamas, Tayyaba Imdad, Maham Manzoor, Jannat Rasheed, Quratulain, Sana Talib, Yusra Amir (wicketkeeper), Ayesha Zafar, Haleema Dua, and Wasifa Hussain (wicketkeeper)

Invincibles

Muneeba Ali (captain, wicketkeeper), Khadija Chishti, Neelam Mushtaq, Dua Majid, Momina Riasat, Natalia Parvaiz, Bakhtawar Asad, Fatima Khan, Nayab (wicketkeeper), Tuba Hassan, Rida Aslam, Saba Sher, Samiya Afsar, Laiba Mansoor, Minhail Javaid, Sana Urooj, Subica Shahzadi, Tasmia Rubab, Hafsa Khalid, and Ayesha Rehman

Stars

Omaima Sohail (captain), Kaynat Hafeez, Anosha Nasir, Shabnam Hayat (wicketkeeper), Diana Baig, Soha Fatima (wicketkeeper), Sidra Amin, Syeda Taskyn Fatima, Warda Yousaf, Haniah Ahmer, Noor-ul-Iman, Fatima Zahra, Syeda Masooma, Seema Gul, Arijah Haseeb, Yusra Ehtesham, Manahil Rafiq, Anam Amin, Syeda Aroob Shah, and Gull Rukh

The squads are stacked with familiar names. Fatima Sana leads Conquerors, while Nashra Sundhu captains Strikers. Rameen Shamim guides the Challengers group. Muneeba Ali, always calm behind the stumps, captains the Invincibles. And the Stars once again rally behind Omaima Sohail. Each squad mixes seasoned heads with bright newcomers, which always brings unpredictable moments. That is what keeps this event lively.

The warm-up chatter is done. Now it comes down to execution, nerves, and maybe a flash of brilliance out of nowhere. That is usually what separates champions from the rest.