RAWALPINDI: Central Punjab batter Abdullah Shafique starred with an unbeaten 189-run knock to aid his side raise a massive total of 358/6 against Sindh on the opening day of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy (QEAT).
Abdullah completely dominated the Sindh bowlers as he smashed more than two dozen boundaries, including 23 fours and three sixes as he faced 231 deliveries while batting throughout the day.
Aamer Yamin, on the other hand, combined excellently with Abdullah for a valiant seventh-wicket partnership of 120 runs as the pair remained firm on the crease till the end of the day’s play.
Yamin scored a quick 61 off 80 before stumps, laced with six fours and two sixes.
Sindh, on the other hand, had a handsome start to their bowling after they elected to field first as Mir Hamza provided the initial breakthrough on 43 runs total, sending Abid Ali back to the pavilion.
Ali Zaryab (19), Mohammad Saad ( 20) and Tayyab Tahir (13) failed to prolong their stays on the crease before Qasim Akram joined Abdullah on the crease for a 77-run stand on the fifth wicket.
Akram fell prey to Asif Mehmood after scoring 31 off 72 while the next batter Ali Shan went back quickly following a runout.
For Sindh, Asif bagged three wickets while Muhammad Umar and Mir Hamza took a scalp each.
In another first-round match, Abdul Faseeh and Umar Amin put Northern in a commanding position over Southern Punjab (SP) as they managed 379/4 on the opening day at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad.
Faseeh blasted a brilliant 151, laced with 20 fours and four sixes while Amin played a valiant knock of 89 off 184 as the pair combined for a magnificent 188-run partnership on the second wicket.
SP bowler Hassan Khan got rid of the fierce-looking duo as he bowled out Faseeh on a cumulative total of 248. Amin soon followed the suit and was dismissed in a similar fashion by the same bowler.
Sarmad Bhatti and Mubashir Khan then raised another strong partnership of 117 runs on the sixth wicket and remained not out till the end of the opening day’s play.
Bhatti and Mubashir will continue the Northern’s first inning on day 2 with the overnight score of 35 and 74, respectively.
For SP, apart from Hassan’s three strikes and a scalp from Ali Usman, the bowling sheet presented a woeful picture.
A similar batters’ dominance was also witnessed at Abbotadabad Cricket Stadium where Balochistan raised 324/5 against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) thanks to the sublime knocks by Azeem Ghumman and Abdul Waheed Bangalzai.
Ghumman top-scored for his side with 78 and made the KP captain regret his decision to bowl first after winning the toss.
Bangalzai, on the other smashed 69 including thirteen scintillating boundaries and paired with Ghumman for the second-wicket partnership of 133 runs.
Following their dismissals, Ali Waqas shone with a brilliant half-century in the final session of the day and carried his bat till the end of the day’s play.
He will continue his inning from 55 with Haseebullah (33) on the other end at the start of the second day.
For KP, Irfanullah Shah, Arshad Iqbal, Sarwar Afridi, Ihsanullah and Khalid Usman bagged wicket apiece.
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