Tag: Southern Punjab vs Balochistan

KARACHI: The table-toppers of the ongoing Pakistan Cup Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) alongside Sindh and Balochistan won their respective matches to secure fifth-round victories over Northern, Southern Punjab (SP), and Central Punjab (CP) respectively.

In the 14th match of the ongoing tournament, KPK sealed a thrilling last-over victory over Northern at the back of Mohammad Sarwar Afridi’s brilliant century.

Set to chase 270, the defending champions sealed the victory in the final over despite a poor start as the side lost their first three wickets for a mere 44.

Sarwar and Adil Amin then partnered strongly for the fourth wicket and pulled their side out of the trouble. The pair added a magnificent 139-runs for the fourth wicket to anchor the run chase before the latter fell short after scoring an important half-century.

Adil scored 60 off 88 balls with the help of three boundaries and a six, while Sarwar top-scored for his side with an astonishing century. The right-handed batter scored 119 off 160 balls; smashing 12 boundaries and a six.

Following their departure, young wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Haris made sure to drive his side to victory as the right-handed batter scored an unbeaten 38.

For Northern, Imad Wasim claimed two wickets, while Asif Ali and Musa Khan struck out a batter each.

Batting first, Northern finished at 269/7 in the allotted 50 overs, thanks to the brilliant century from Umar Amin.

The left-handed batter top-scored for his side with an unbeaten 124 off 221 balls with the help of 13 boundaries and two sixes, while the rest of the batters could not contribute significantly. Rohail Nazir, with his 33, remained the second top-scorer for the home side.

For KPK, Sarwar led the bowling charts too by taking three wickets, while Arshad Iqbal, Asif Afridi, Khalid Usman, and Adil made one scalp each.

In another match of the ongoing Pakistan Cup, Balochistan thumped SP by a massive margin of 105 runs.

Batting first, Balochistan posted a mammoth 320/4 runs as Haseebullah and Asad Shafiq scored brilliant centuries. Asad scored a quick 101 off just 97 balls, while Haseebullah top-scored with his 142 off 190 balls with the help of 20 boundaries and a six.

Imran Butt and Abdul Wahid Bangalzai also chipped in with their 34 each respectively as the side finished at 320/4 in the allotted 50 overs.

For SP, Aamer Yamin, Muhammad Imran, and Hassan Khan made one scalp each.

Set to chase a mammoth, SP could only manage to score 215 before being bowled out in 41 overs.

SP’s top-order batter Sharoon Siraj and the explosive left-handed Khushdil Shah resited a bit; both scoring half-centuries, while the rest of the batters failed to contribute significantly in the run chase.

Khushdil scored 50 off 54 balls, Sharoon top-scored with 62 off 104 deliveries with the help of eight boundaries.

For Balochistan, Yasir Shah shone with a five-fer, while Kashif Bhatti picked three wickets. Amad Butt and Akif Javed, on the other hand, struck out a batter each.

In the 15th match of the ongoing tournament, Sindh edged past CP by three wickets in a low scoring thriller.

Set to chase a mere 135, Sindh lost their first four wickets with just 45 runs on the board. The experienced batter Khurram Manzoor, however, anchored the run chase with his gritty 42; top-scoring for the side, while Mohammad Hassan followed back with his unbeaten 30.

Danish Aziz, on the other hand, also scored runs for the team as the left-handed batter scored 27 off 74 balls to steer his side to the victory.

For CP, Usman Qadir took three wickets, while Raza Ali Dar bagged two. Ahmed Bashir, on the other hand, made one scalp.

Batting first, SP’s batting line-up failed and could only manage to score 134 before being bowled out in 29 overs.

The experienced batter Umar Akmal top-scored with his valiant 39, while Rizwan Hussain followed back with his 28.

For Sindh, Shahnawaz Dahani and Abrar Ahmed took three wickets each, while Sohail Khan bagged two. Mir Hamza and Danish, on the other hand, struck out a batter each.

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KARACHI: Haider Ali provided an eye-catching start to Northern after pacer Haris Rauf helped the side restrict Central Punjab for 223/8 on the second day of their ongoing fixture in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy (QEAT) at NBP Sports Complex here on Wednesday.

Central’s batters struggled in response to Northern’s 445, as the team lost eight wickets for 223 at stumps. Their openers were also unable to get the team off to a good start, with Rizwan Hussain being dismissed on 7 by Haris Rauf. Imran Dogar and Ali Zaryab began to rebuild the innings but fell short when Dogar was dismissed on 43. When the score was 113, Zaryab (37) was also sent back to the pavilion.

Hussain Talat and Muhammad Saad looked solid as the pair added 70 runs to the team total before Saad was dismissed on 38 by Haris. Talat (51) was also on his way back to the pavilion after reaching a half-century. The rest of the batters were unable to contribute significantly to the team’s score. On day three, Usman Qadir and Waqas Maqsood will take over the proceedings.

Northern’s pick of the bowlers was Haris, who dismissed six batters before stumps. Ather Mehmood and Mubasir Khan each struck out a batter.

Batting first, Northern batters struggled to get off to a good start in their first innings, losing opener Zaid Alam (12) for 23 after he was dismissed by Mohammad Ali. However, Mohammad Huraira and his skipper, Umar Amin, put up a solid stand and kept their team out of trouble, as both batters scored half-centuries. Before being ejected, the duo contributed 96 runs to the team’s total. Northern lost both batters with the score at 119. Huraira scored 54, whereas, Amin scored 50.

The momentum appeared to have shifted Central’s way, but Haider’s masterful innings changed the game’s parameters. He scored a magnificent first-class double-century to put his side in command, scoring 206 off just 294 deliveries, including 27 boundaries and four sixes. Faizan Riaz, who batted alongside Haider, also delivered a solid performance, scoring 67 runs off 233 deliveries. The remaining batters were unable to make a significant contribution, and the team was bowled out for a massive total of 445 in the first innings.

Central’s Ali was the standout bowler as he bagged three wickets. Usman Qadir and Ahmed Safi Abdullah both struck out two batters.

At the toss in one of the matches of the seventh round of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2021-22, Central’s captain – Ali Zaryab – won the toss and put Northern into bat.

Northern are currently in fourth place on the points table. Central, on the other hand, is in second place.

On the other hand, table-toppers Sindh, are in trouble against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the second match of the ongoing round of QEAT, having been bowled out for 145 in the first innings. Arshad Iqbal of KPK bagged a five-fer. In response, KPK were bowled out for 265, taking a 120-runs lead. Musaddiq Ahmed was their standout batter, scoring 75 runs. Asif Afridi (50) also contributed with a half-century. Sohail Khan finished with a five-wicket haul. Mir Hamza, on the other hand, took three wickets for Sindh.

Sindh are looking comfortable in the second innings after starting poorly and losing two wickets, as their skipper Asad Shafiq and Khurram Manzoor stood up, added 126 runs to the team’s total after the side lost two wickets for just 11. Arshad and Irfanullah Shah each struck out a batter. Asad (50*) and Khurram (59*) will resume the proceedings for Sindh at 137/2 on day-3.

In another seventh-round match, Balochistan is trailing Southern Punjab by 207 runs to 483. Southern, batting first, struggled to get off to a good start, as the team’s openers were lost cheaply. This did not bother them much, as Salman Ali Agha (135), Zeeshan Ashraf (102) and Yousuf Babar (119*) all hit centuries to put their team in command. Salman, on the other hand, remained his team’s top scorer.

Khurram Shahzad and Akif Javed both had three wickets to their names. Kashif Bhatti claimed two wickets. Gohar Faiz and Najeebullah Achakzai, on the other hand, each dismissed a batter.

Balochistan responded poorly, losing two quick wickets for 28 runs, including Imran Butt and Umar Akmal, who returned to professional cricket after a 21-month absence. Shan Masood, on the other hand, played a gritty knock and scored a brilliant century before being dismissed by Ali Usman on 105. Ayaz Tasawar (58*) and Bismillah Khan (57) also contributed significantly to their team’s resurgence. On day three, the two half-centurions will resume for Balochistan at 276/4.

Ali and Amir Yamin each struck out two batters.

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