The National Women’s T20 Tournament will begin today (Wednesday) in Karachi, the cricket board announced in a statement. The 18-day tournament will see five teams – Challengers, Conquerors, Invincibles, Stars and Strikers, competing against one another with each team playing eight matches with a total of 22 matches slated to take place till 24 May, it said. The T20 matches will be played at the National Bank Stadium and Oval Ground, with first ball of each match to be bowled at 3pm. The opening day will see Strikers competing against National Women’s One-Day Champions Stars at the National Bank Stadium, while Conquerors will take on Invincibles at the Oval Ground. To make the tournament more competitive, the teams finishing second and third on the points table will face off in a Qualifier on 22 May, with the winner advancing to meet the top-ranked team in the final on 24 May. The final will be played at the National Bank Stadium. A total of 80 cricketers will participate in the tournament, which carries a prize pool of over Rs3 million. The champions will receive Rs1.5 million, while the runners-up will take home Rs1 million. Pakistan national team captain Fatima Sana will lead Conquerors, while opening batter Gull Feroza will captain Strikers. Muneeba Ali, the only Pakistan women batter to score a T20I century will lead Invincibles, while all-rounder Rameen Shamim will lead Challengers. Sidra Amin, who was Pakistan’s top run-getter in the recently concluded ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier, will lead Stars. Captains’ while speaking exclusively to PCB Digital on the eve of the tournament expressed their confidence on team’s preparations. Challengers captain Rameen Shamim: “We have made plans for the tournament with the coaching staff and will try to execute them on the field. “We have a balanced squad with all departments covered and we will aim to produce good results in every match of the tournament.” Conquerors captain Fatima Sana: “We will try to do well in the T20 tournament. All the players are eager to showcase their skills and perform well for the team. “Our team couldn’t win the final of the One-Day Tournament, but this is a T20 event and we will try not to repeat the same mistakes and do well in this competition.” Invincibles captain Muneeba Ali: “We will take one game at a time and will try to win the opening match to gain momentum in the tournament. “I will try to contribute as much in team’s better performance in the tournament.” Stars captain Sidra Amin: “Our team had won the previous One-Day Tournament, so we will be aiming high in the forthcoming T20 tournament. “We have had domestic tournaments regularly in Karachi, so we are familiar with the conditions and are confident of achieving better results in the tournament.” Strikers captain Gull Feroza: “We have had a good preparation camp leading up to the tournament and the young players in our side are ready to perform when given the opportunity. “I am optimistic the team will perform well and give better results in the tournament.”