I still cant believe there’s no Islamabad team 
Toh khud hee kuch karo. Team banao.
Waise BTW sarey kay sarey civil servants hongay uss team mein. 
Faisalabad need only five more
wickets to defeat Karachi today 
By Gul Hameed Bhatti
KARACHI: Faisalabad were looking at a rather comfortable victory as, on the third day of their second-round, four-day 46th Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Cricket Championship match against Karachi, they needed to capture the home side’s last five wickets as Karachi themselves required another 174 runs to win the game, here at the National Stadium on Thursday.
Although Faisalabad were bowled out for a somewhat inadequate score of 215 in their second innings yesterday, they were boosted by a responsible century knock by their captain Misbah-ul-Haq, which eventually left Karachi to make 281 runs for victory. By the close of play on the third day, they had reached 107 in the last innings of the match and lost half of their wickets.
The 29-year-old, Mianwali-born Misbah, who has appeared in five Tests and 11 One-day Internationals for Pakistan during the last four seasons, achieved the 16th hundred of his first-class career. Following a first innings duck, he had started belligerently on Wednesday afternoon, making 31 not out with seven fours in his team’s second innings 53 for two.
Yesterday, he was the last man out, having scored 115 of the 207 runs made while he was at the crease. He was at the wicket for a little over five and a half hours, faced 239 balls and hit 19 fours and a six. With fellow Pakistan player Naved Latif, who had contributed 91 in the first innings, Misbah helped add 55 runs for the fifth-wicket stand. Naved’s 37 came off only 45 balls in just over an hour and included eight boundaries.
Karachi’s pace bowlers Mohammad Sami, Tanvir Ahmed and Fahad Khan then inflicted some telling blows and Faisalabad lost five wickets for the addition of only 31 runs. Misbah, however, was still there. With left-arm pace bowler Samiullah Khan Niazi, who bats right-handed, the skipper got involved in an invaluable 63-run last-wicket stand that came in just over an hour and a half.
Samiullah, who had made nine runs in the first innings as the ninth-wicket partnership between him and Tauqeer Hussain (97 not out) realised 72 runs in 69 minutes, contributed an unbeaten eight yesterday. In the match he batted overall for two hours 42 minutes, faced 102 balls for his 17 runs and hit three boundaries.
His namesake, Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Sami, finally found his rhythm and finished with five wickets for 62 runs in 20.1 overs, after taking just 1-70 in the first innings. Tanvir, who bagged six for 112 on the opening day (MOnday), and teenager Fahad Khan captured two wickets apiece.
As in the first innings, Karachi openers Shadab Kabir and Shahid Afridi performed below potential. Characteristically, Afridi hammered 23 off a mere 22 balls with three fours and perished. The left-handed Shadab took 101 minutes over his 20 that came off 66 deliveries and also included three boundaries. Naumanullah made only two runs.
Saeed Bin Nasir and skipper Moin Khan, after making 58 in the first knock, were both gone before Karachi could get past the 100-run mark. Five wickets were down already, but Test left-hander Asim Kamal still appears to hold fort as he is unbeaten with 33 runs to his name. These have come off 45 balls with five fours in 68 minutes.
In other second-round matches, which both ended inside three days on Wednesday, Peshawar defeated Lahore at the Sheikhupura Stadium while Multan were beaten by Sialkot at the Multan Cricket Stadium. The margin of victory in both games was nine wickets.
Peshawar and Sialkot, with nine points each, currently top the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Championship table. If Faisalabad win today, they will capture the full nine points and that will take their tally to 12 from two matches. Then, they’ll be at the head of the points table.
Scoreboard
Karachi won toss
Faisalabad 1st inns 311 (Ijaz Ahmed Jr 54, Naved Latif 91, Tauqeer Hussain 97*; Tanvir Ahmed 6-112)
Karachi 1st inns 246 (Naumanullah 45, Asim Kamal 53, Moin Khan 58; Ahmed Hayat 5-69)
Faisalabad 2nd inns (overnight 53-2)
Mohammad Hafeez c Moin b Fahad 16
Asif Hussain run out (Sami) 0
†Mohammad Salman c Shadab b Sami 2
*Misbah-ul-Haq lbw b Sami 115
Mohammad Ramzan c Moin b Fahad 2
Naved Latif c Tahir b Tanvir 37
Ijaz Ahmed Jr c Naumanullah b Tanvir 3
Tauqeer Hussain c sub (Asif) b Sami 6
Ahmed Hayat b Sami 0
Saeed Ajmal c Saeed b Sami 3
Samiullah Niazi not out 8
Extras (b2, lb4, w6, nb11) 23
Total (all out, 76.1 overs) 215
Fall: 1-4, 2-8, 3-53, 4-66, 5-121, 6-127, 7-139, 8-139, 9-152
Bowling: Mohammad Sami 20.1-4-62-5 (11nb); Tanvir Ahmed 16-3-48-2 (5w); Nasir Khan 11-6-21-0; Fahad Khan 16-6-46-2 (1w); Tahir Khan 7-0-23-0; Naumanullah 1-1-0-0; Shahid Afridi 5-1-9-0
Karachi 2nd inns
Shadab Kabir b Tauqeer 20
Shahid Afridi c Ahmed Hayat b Tauqeer 23
Naumanullah lbw b Samiullah 2
Asim Kamal not out 33
Saeed Bin Nasir c Ramzan b Samiullah 12
*†Moin Khan c Salman b Ahmed Hayat 6
Mohammad Sami not out 2
Extras (b4, lb5) 9
Total (5 wkts, 32 overs) 107
To bat: Tahir Khan, Tanvir Ahmed, Fahad Khan, Nasir Khan
Fall: 1-28, 2-43, 3-51, 4-80, 5-87
Bowling: Samiullah Niazi 16-3-38-2; Tauqeer Hussain 11-4-31-2; Ahmed Hayat 5-0-29-1
Umpires: Athar Zaidi and Iqbal Butt. Match referee: Taslim Arif. Official scorer: Mohammad Ahsan
Faisalabad go to top of the table after beating Karachi
By Gul Hameed Bhatti
KARACHI: Karachi failed to put up much of a fight as, on the final day of their second-round, four-day 46th Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Cricket Championship match against Faisalabad, they were bowled out for 202 runs in their second innings before the lunch and Jumaa Prayers break, here at the National Stadium on Friday. Faisalabad won by 78 runs and overtook Peshawar and Lahore to get on top of the competition’s points table.
Only the Test left-hander Asim Kamal stood between Faisalabad and victory for a while. He was helped with a 64-run stand for the seventh wicket by off-spinner Tahir Khan, but the end was not far away. The last four wickets fell with the addition of just a further 17 runs and Karachi had started the tournament with a defeat in their first match.
The 27-year-old Asim Kamal, who had started his Test career with an innings of 99 - on his debut against South Africa at Lahore last October, contributed 53 in Karachi’s first innings of 246. Faisalabad, who began the game with a first innings score of 311, took a lead of 65 and then an overall advantage of 280 runs in spite of being dismissed for only 215 in their second outing.
Yesterday, after Karachi had resumed at their overnight 107 for five - still needing another 174 runs to conjure up an improbable win - with Asim unbeaten at 33, the score was taken to 121 by which time nightwatchman Mohammad Sami’s wicket made it six down for them. Following the seventh-wicket defiance, Faisalabad’s budding all-rounder Tauqeer Hussain had the final say with figures of five wickets for 55 runs with his medium-fast bowling.
Asim made 82 runs in the second innings, facing 136 deliveries while hitting 10 fours and a six in a stay of just short of three and a half hours. Tahir’s 28 came off 55 deliveries in an hour and a quarter as he sent the ball twice to the boundary and once over it.
Karachi’s long tail once again proved to be their undoing, as in the first innings. They had gone into the match with only five specialist batsmen plus skipper Moin Khan. And the last four wickets in either knock just capitulated.
For Faisalabad, the 22-year-old Tauqeer, playing in only his second season of first-class cricket, had on the opening day on Monday lifted his team’s morale by scoring an unbeaten 97 at number eight - his career highest. Yesterday, he added a five-wicket haul to his match-winning efforts.
Also among the wickets was the left-arm fast-medium Samiullah Khan Niazi, who captured three for 78 to follow his first innings 3-65. In addition, as a right-handed batsman, Samiullah stayed at the crease in the two innings overall for two hours 42 minutes, faced 102 balls for his 17 runs (9 and 8 not out) and hit three boundaries.
In other second-round matches, which both ended inside three days on Wednesday, Peshawar defeated Lahore at the Sheikhupura Stadium while Multan were beaten by Sialkot at the Multan Cricket Stadium. The margin of victory in both games was nine wickets.
Karachi’s next match in the Quaid-e-Azam Cup National One-day Tournament on Sunday could be against Hyderabad here at the National Stadium. Last Sunday, they were supposed to meet Hyderabad, but a court stay order obtained by a player against his non-inclusion in the Hyderabad side had prompted the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to change Karachi’s opponents to Faisalabad. At the moment, it’s not clear whether the Hyderabad team has been allowed to play in the limited-over and first-class Quaid-e-Azam tournaments.
Scoreboard
Karachi won toss
Faisalabad 1st inns 311 (Ijaz Ahmed Jr 54, Naved Latif 91, Tauqeer Hussain 97*; Tanvir Ahmed 6-112)
Karachi 1st inns 246 (Naumanullah 45, Asim Kamal 53, Moin Khan 58; Ahmed Hayat 5-69)
Faisalabad 2nd inns 215 (Misbah-ul-Haq 115; Mohammad Sami 5-62)
Karachi 2nd inns (overnight 107-5)
Shadab Kabir b Tauqeer 20
Shahid Afridi c Ahmed Hayat b Tauqeer 23
Naumanullah lbw b Samiullah 2
Asim Kamal c Salman b Tauqeer 82
Saeed Bin Nasir c Ramzan b Samiullah 12
*†Moin Khan c Salman b Ahmed Hayat 6
Mohammad Sami c Hafeez b Tauqeer 8
Tahir Khan c Naved b Samiullah 28
Tanvir Ahmed b Saeed 0
Fahad Khan not out 1
Nasir Khan b Tauqeer 0
Extras (b5, lb11, w4) 20
Total (all out, 65.3 overs) 202
Fall: 1-28, 2-43, 3-51, 4-80, 5-87, 6-121, 7-185, 8-201, 9-201
Bowling: Samiullah Niazi 28-5-78-3; Tauqeer Hussain 19.3-5-55-5; Ahmed Hayat 5-0-29-1; Naved Latif 8-1-17-0 (4w); Saeed Ajmal 5-2-7-1
Result: Faisalabad won by 78 runs
Umpires: Athar Zaidi and Iqbal Butt. Match referee: Taslim Arif. Official scorer: Mohammad Ahsan
Quaid-e-Azam Trophy points table
Teams P W L D Pts
Faisalabad 2 1 - 1 12
Peshawar 2 1 - 1 9
Sialkot 2 1 - 1 9
Lahore 2 1 1 - 9
Rawalpindi 1 - - 1 0
Karachi 1 - 1 - 0
Multan 2 - 2 - 0
Hyderabad 0 - - - -
Quetta 0 - - - -
Quetta finally to be seen in Quaid-e-Azam Cup action
By Gul Hameed Bhatti
KARACHI: Faisalabad, after their 78-run win against Karachi in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Cricket Championship, here at the National Stadium on Friday, occupy the top spot in both the Quaid-e-Azam Cup National One-day Tournament and the first-class QA Trophy Championship points tables. In the limited-over competition, they have been triumphant in both their matches so far - beating Sialkot two weeks ago by a solitary wicket with only one over to go and then defeating Karachi here at the National Stadium last Monday, by the convincing margin of 60 runs.
Faisalabad will be taking a well deserved rest this week - in fact over the next 15 days which includes the break for the first ten days of Muharram-ul-Haram - before they play their next set of Quaid-e-Azam Cup and Trophy matches on March 7, against Multan at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad.
Karachi too will be missing from third-round action, as their next meeting is against Hyderabad here at the National Stadium, also on March 7. Three matches thus will be played today (Sunday) in the Quaid-e-Azam National One-day Tournament at different centres in the upper regions of the country.
Quetta, who did not play their last two scheduled matches - against Hyderabad on February 8 and against Karachi last Sunday, will finally be seen out there in the middle when they meet Multan at the Multan Cricket Stadium today.
A case had been pending in a Quetta court and then in the sessions court, as the Cricketers Association of Balochistan (CAB) had obtained a stay order against the composition of the region’s team, which the CAB believed included several ‘ineligible’ players and excluded some more deserving ones.
Similarly, a Hyderabad player Ayaz Taifi took the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to court citing his non-inclusion in the team being due to unfair reasons. The Quetta versus Hyderabad match, however, had not materialsed because the court stay order forbade the PCB-appointed selection committee’s chosen Quetta side was restrained from appearing in the earlier matches.
Karachi were scheduled to play against Quetta in the second round from February 15 onwards. While the court case had still not been decided, the PCB Domestic Cricket Monitoring Committee (DCMC) changed Karachi’s opponents last week to Faisalabad. The latter were supposed to have proceeded to Hyderabad to face them at the Niaz Stadium there but, as that match could not be played, Faisalabad were redirected to play here in Karachi.
The situation now is that Quetta and Hyderabad have still not featured in either the Quaid-e-Azam Cup or Trophy tournaments’ first two rounds. According to a PCB source, Quetta though will definitely be in Multan today to start their programme with a limited overs fixture.
Lahore, who have won and lost one each of their two matches, have travelled north to meet Rawalpindi. The latter were beaten by Peshawar on February 8 by 28 runs at the Arbab Niaz Stadium in Peshawar, according to the Duckworth/Lewis Method in a rain-affected encounter. Peshawar, second after Faisalabad in the points table, will play against Sialkot at the Jinnah Stadium.
Sialkot, too, like Lahore, have won and lost one each of their first two matches. Multan have been beaten twice in as many appearances. However, today they have an even chance of earning their first points in the tournament, as it is anticipated that they have a much stronger outfit than Quetta’s.
Here’s the schedule for the three Quaid-e-Azam Cup National One-day Tournament games being played today: Multan v Quetta at Multan Cricket Stadium (umpires Saleem Badar and Siddiq Khan, match referee Haaris Khan, official scorer Iqbal Malik),
Rawalpindi v Lahore at Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) Stadium Rawalpindi (Afzaal Ahmed and Islam Khan, Khatib Rizwan, Adnan Farooq) and Sialkot v Peshawar at Jinnah Stadium Sialkot (Aleem Dar and Asad Rauf, Khalid Niazi, Syed Najamus Saeed).
The same six teams will go on to play their first-class, third-round, four-day 46th Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Championship matches from Monday (tomorrow), at the same venues and with the same sets of umpires, match referees and official scorers.
Quaid-e-Azam Cup points table
Teams P W L Pts NRR
Faisalabad 2 2 - 8 +0.662
Peshawar 2 2 - 8 +0.560
Sialkot 2 1 1 4 +1.522
Lahore 2 1 1 4 -0.051
Rawalpindi 1 - 1 0 -0.801
Karachi 1 - 1 0 -1.200
Multan 2 - 2 0 -2.175
Hyderabad 0 - - - -
Quetta 0 - - - -
Sialkot upset Peshawar with seven-wicket victory
From our correspondent
SIALKOT: With a seven-wicket win in their third-round Quaid-e-Azam Cup National One-day Cricket Tournamnent match against Peshawar, here at the Jinnah Stadium on Sunday, Sialkot have now gone up to the second spot in the points table. Faisalabad still lead the table as they have played in only two matches and won both for a total of eight points.
Sialkot were well served by their second-wicket pair of Faisal Naved and the left-handed Qaiser Abbas, as both contributed scores in the 90s and were involved in a partnership of 133 runs. Peshawar’s total of 246 for nine in their fifty overs was easily overahuled as Sialkot lost only three wickets and won the match with almost eight overs to spare.
Faisal hit 90 off 127 balls in just short of two and three-quarter hours, with the help of 11 boundaries. Qaiser remained unbeaten with 92, that came off only 91 deliveries and included 10 fours.
Earlier, Pakistan opener Yasir Hameed finally got some runs as he made 59 off 84 balls with six fours as Peshawar were given a 118-run start in the first 24 overs. Wajahatullah Wasti top-scored with 69 off a mere 74 deliveries while executing nine fours and two sixes.
Later, Shoaib Khan (32 off 48 balls with two fours) and wicket-keeper Ahmed Said (29 off 36 deliveries with three boundaries) batted with some conviction but Peshawar soon lost their way, their last five wickets falling for an addition of just 37 runs.
Sialkot skipper Shoaib Malik, the Pakistan off-spinner, took four wickets for 50 runs in his 10 overs. He found an admirable foil in the left-arm slow Kamran Younis, who bowled eight overs for a return of three for 29. When Sialkot batted, the in-form Imran Nazir hammered a characteristic 26 off 27 balls with five fours but he lasted at the crease for less than an hour. The opening stand was worth 67 runs though.
Scoreboard
Sialkot won toss
Peshawar
Yasir Hameed c Zahid b Shoaib 59
Wajahatullah Wasti lbw b Shoaib 69
Aftab Khan c & b Shoaib 15
*Younis Khan lbw b Naved 11
Shoaib Khan c Imran b Shoaib 32
†Ahmed Said c Khalid b Kamran 29
Sajid Shah c Khalid b Zahid 3
Umar Gul c Imran b Kamran 9
Kabir Khan not out 1
Arshad Khan c Shoaib b Kamran 4
Noor-ul-Amin not out 0
Extras (b4, lb2, w5, nb3) 14
Total (9 wkts, 50 overs) 246
Fall: 1-118, 2-141, 3-151, 4-166, 5-209, 6-226, 7-240, 8-241, 9-245
Bowling: Naved-ul-Hasan 10-0-41-1 (2nb, 5w); Zahid Saeed 5-0-42-1 (1nb); Tahir Mughal 7-0-37-0; Abdul Rehman 10-0-41-0; Shoaib Malik 10-0-50-4; Kamran Younis 8-0-29-3
Sialkot
Imran Nazir b Sajid 26
Faisal Naved lbw b Umar 90
Qaiser Abbas not out 92
*Shoaib Malik c Ahmed Said b Sajid 8
Shahzad Malik not out 5
Extras (lb5, w8, nb14) 27
Total (3 wkts, 42.1 overs) 248
Did not bat: Naved-ul-Hasan, Kamran Younis, †Haafiz Khalid, Zahid Saeed, Abdul Rehman, Tahir Mughal
Fall: 1-67, 2-200, 3-229
Bowling: Umar Gul 8-1-49-1 (9nb, 4w); Sajid Shah 7.1-1-48-2 (3nb, 3w); Noor-ul-Amin 10-0-60-0; Kabir Khan 4-0-25-0 (1nb, 1w); Aftab Khan 1-0-6-0; Arshad Khan 10-0-41-0; Younis Khan 2-0-14-0 (1nb)
Result: Sialkot won by 7 wickets
Man of the Match: Qaiser Abbas
Umpires: Aleem Dar and Asad Rauf. Match referee: Azmat Rana. Official scorer: Syed Najamus Saeed
Quaid-e-Azam
Cup points table
Teams P W L Pts NRR
Faisalabad 2 2 - 8 +0.662
Sialkot 3 2 1 8 +1.350
Lahore 3 2 1 8 +0.228
Peshawar 3 2 1 8 +0.085
Multan 3 1 2 4 -0.387
Rawalpindi 1 - 1 0 -0.801
Karachi 1 - 1 0 -1.200
Quetta 1 - 1 0 -2.480
Hyderabad 0 - - - -
Azhar Mahmood shines but Lahore clinch the match
From our correspondent
LAHORE: After this third round Quaid-e-Azam Cup National One-day Cricket Tournament match was shifted from the Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) Stadium in Rawalpindi, Lahore coasted to a comfortable five-wicket win over Rawalpindi, here at the LCCA Ground on Sunday. Both sides were at their strongest but Rawalpindi, in the end, lost out with 43 balls to spare.
Rawalpindi had their appointed skipper Shoaib Akhtar playing for them for the first time this season. He won the toss and opted to bat. Rawalpindi were soon in trouble, with three wickets gone with only 18 runs on the board. These included the wicket of Bazid Khan, from whom much was expected in this match. He was trapped lbw by pace bowler Wasim Khan for a second-ball duck.
Rawalpindi were all out for 265 on the penultimate ball of their fifty overs. Lahore made 266 for the loss of five wickets and won the match in the 43rd over. In a second-wicket stand of 115, Taufeeq Umar and Saleem Elahi both made 78 runs, Saleem remaining unbeaten.
Naved Ashraf, who is in impeccable form this season, contributed yet another hundred to the Rawalpindi score, his 101 coming off 120 deliveries in just over two and a half hours with seven fours and two sixes.
He lifted his team from a score of 73 for five, through a 156-run sixth-wicket stand with Pakistan all-rounder Azhar Mahmood.
Azhar hit a quick-fire 73 off 85 balls with four fours and a six, but Lahore skipper Abdul Razzaq had the final say taking two more wickets to finish with four for 67 as Rawalpindi suffered another mini-collapse.
Lahore were off to a 63-run start. The left-handed Taufeeq made his 78 off just 71 balls with 11 fours and three sixes while Saleem’s unbeaten 78 came off 84 balls with seven fours. The unbroken sixth-wcket stand was worth 87 runs as wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal scored 43 not out off 53 balls with four boundaries.
Scoreboard
Rawalpindi won toss
Rawalpindi
Bilal Asad lbw b Razzaq 39
Babar Naeem run out (Razzaq/Kamran) 5
Ashar Zaidi lbw b Wasim 5
Bazid Khan lbw b Wasim 0
Naved Ashraf c Saleem b Saqlain 101
†Mohammad Shahbaz c Kamran b Razzaq 0
Azhar Mahmood c Intikhab b Razzaq 73
*Shoaib Akhtar c Imran b Saqlain 10
Yasir Arafat b Razzaq 11
Alamgir Khan not out 7
Najaf Shah run out (Taufeeq/Kamran) 0
Extras (lb2, w5, nb7) 14
Total (all out, 49.5 overs) 265
Fall: 1-9, 2-17, 3-18, 4-73, 5-73, 6-229, 7-241, 8-258, 9-265
Bowling: Wasim Khan 10-1-50-2 (3nb, 3w); Mohammad Khalil 10-1-40-0 (2nb); Abdul Razzzaq 9.5-0-67-4 (2nb, 1w); Azhar Ali 3.4-0-9-0; Saqlain Mushtaq 10-0-60-2 (1w); Imran Farhat 6.2-0-37-0
Lahore
Imran Farhat c Shahbaz b Najaf 23
Taufeeq Umar b Azhar 78
Saleem Elahi not out 78
Salman Butt lbw b Azhar 4
Adil Nisar c Shahbaz b Azhar 9
*Abdul Razzaq b Bilal 4
†Kamran Akmal not out 43
Extras (b5, lb5, w9, nb8) 27
Total (5 wkts, 42.5 overs) 266
Did not bat: Saqlain Mushtaq, Mohammad Khalil, Wasim Khan, Azhar Ali
Fall: 1-63, 2-158, 3-164, 4-174, 5-179
Bowling: Shoaib Akhtar 6-1-22-0 (2w); Azhar Mahmood 9-0-53-3 (3nb, 2w); Najaf Shah 9-0-51-1; Yasir Arafat 6.5-0-50-0 (4nb, 1w); Alamgir Khan 4-0-23-0 (1w); Babar Naeem 1-0-14-0; Bilal Asad 7-0-43-1 (1nb, 3w)
Result: Lahore won by 5 wickets
Man of the Match: Azhar Mahmood
Umpires: Afzaal Ahmed and Islam Khan. Match referee: Khatib Rizwan. Official scorer: Masood Ahmed
Multan into winning ways after emphatic 124-run victory
From our correspondent
MULTAN: After two straight defeats, Multan finally conjured up a win - and a convincing one at that - when they beat Quetta by the emphatic margin of 124 runs, in a third-round Quaid-e-Azam Cup National One-day Cricket Tournament, here at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Sunday. Multan rattled up a score of 319 for five in their allotted fifty overs and then restricted Quetta to 195 for five as they went the full distance.
After the court case, which had obtained a stay order against the selection of the Quetta team, was thrown out, the Quetta outfit were playing for the first time in the competition. They had several ‘guest’ players in their line-up: Batsman Atif Ali Zaidi and off-spinner Irfanuddin from Karachi, left-arm pace bowler Stephen John from Islamabad and quick bowler Mohammad Asif from Sheikhupura.
Only the left-handed Atif batted with some character, scoring his unbeaten 80 off 119 balls in just short of three hours with the help of eight boundaries. There were several good scores in the Multan innings, after they had been put in by the Quetta skipper, new-ball bowler Faisal Irfan.
Opening batsman Yasir Arafat Junior hit a quick 81 off 104 balls with eight fours in a 61-run start in 12 overs. With Saeed Anwar Junior, another left-hander, he later helped add 74 runs for the third-wicket stand. Captain Aamer Bashir and Saeed were then involved in a 119-run partnership for the fourth wicket.
Saeed’s 84 came off just 73 balls with 10 boundaries and a six. Aamer Bashir remained not out with 59 that took a mere 54 balls to make and included five fours and a six.
There were as many as 50 Extras in the Multan innings. These included 28 wides, with Asif and Irfanuddin giving away seven each. John conceded 11 no-balls in addition to four wides.
Scoreboard
Quetta won toss
Multan
Nazir Ahmed c Kamran b Asif 12
Yasir Arafat Jr lbw b Faisal 81
Usman Tariq b Irfanuddin 27
Saeed Anwar Jr c Nasim b Asif 84
*Aamer Bashir not out 59
Kamran Hussain run out (Irfanuddin) 5
†Aamer Ata not out 1
Extras (b4, lb6, w28, nb12) 50
Total (5 wkts, 50 overs) 319
Did not bat: Aqeel Arshad, Sohaib Maqsood, Abdul Rauf, Mohammad Irshad
Fall: 1-61, 2-109, 3-183, 4-302, 5-314
Bowling: Faisal Irfan 10-1-42-1 (1nb, 1w); John 10-1-49-0 (11nb, 4w); Mohammad Asif 10-1-78-2 (7w); Irfanuddin 10-0-62-1 (7w); Zahid Naseer 7-0-45-0 (4w); Samiullah Agha 3-0-33-0 (5w)
Quetta
Samiullah Agha c Aamer Ata b Rauf 4
†Kamran Niazi c sub (Rehan Rafiq) b Kamran 17
Nasim Khan c Aamer Ata b Rauf 8
Atif Ali Zaidi not out 80
Usman Khalid b Aqeel 22
Javed Iqbal c Rauf b Aqeel 14
Irfanuddin not out 17
Extras (b5, lb11, w5, nb12) 33
Total (5 wkts, 50 overs) 195
Did not bat: *Faisal Irfan, Mohammad Asif, Zahid Naseer, S John
Fall: 1-10, 2-19, 3-41, 4-116, 5-158
Bowling: Abdul Rauf 10-2-28-2 (1nb, 1w); Kamran Hussain 7-0-26-1 (2nb, 1w); Mohammad Irshad 8-0-36-0 (8nb, 1w); Sohaib Maqsood 7-2-15-0 (1nb); Aqeel Arshad 10-0-41-2 (1w); Saeed Anwar 8-0-33-0 (1w)
Result: Multan won by 124 runs
Man of the Match: Saeed Anwar Jr
Umpires: Saleem Badar and Siddiq Khan. Match referee: Saadat Ali. Official scorer: Zulfiqar Ali Zulfi
Irfanuddin bags four wickets playing for Quetta
From our correspondent
MULTAN: Quetta did well to restrict Multan, on the opening day of their third-round, four-day 46th Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Cricket Championship match to a score of 235 runs for six wickets in the day’s full 90 overs, here at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Monday.
Almost all Multan batsmen contributed usefully but the close of play score was not what they’d expected to be.
Left-handed opener Yasir Arafat Junior though made an exact 50, with scores of 44 each coming from his opening partner Nazir Ahmed and Saeed Anwar Junior, both left-handers. Another left-hander Rehan Rafiq was still at the crease, having scored 33 runs.
Off-spinner Irfanuddin, a ‘guest’ player taken from Karachi, ended the day with a bit of success with the ball, taking four of the six Multan wickets to fall, at a personal cost of 94 runs in his 34 overs. The other two wickets were taken by off-spinner Zahid Naseer and Islamabad’s left-arm pace bowler Stephen John.
Yasir Arafat scored the first fifty of his first-class career, which is just three matches old. He batted for 163 minutes and faced 111 balls. With Nazir, his opening stand was worth 84 runs. Later, Saeed and skipper Aamer Bashir helped add 50 runs for the fourth wicket.
Quetta won toss
Multan 1st inns
Nazir Ahmed c Usman b Irfanuddin 44
Yasir Arafat Jr c Kamran b Irfanuddin 50
Usman Tariq lbw b John 7
Saeed Anwar Jr c Atif b Zahid 44
*Aamer Bashir b Irfanuddin 22
Rehan Rafiq not out 33
Aqeel Arshad b Irfanuddin 17
†Aamer Ata not out 4
Extras (b4, lb6, w1, nb3) 14
Total (6 wkts, 90 overs) 235
Fall: 1-84, 2-93, 3-121, 4-171, 5-185, 6-219
Bowling: Faisal Irfan 12-6-22-0; Mohammad Asif 15-5-32-0 (3nb); John 12-4-34-1 (1w); Irfanuddin 34-9-94-4; Zahid Naseer 17-2-43-1
Umpires: Saleem Badar and Siddiq Khan. Match referee: Saadat Ali. Official scorer: Zulfiqar Ali Zulfi
Sialkot end first day with tally of 337 for eight
From our correspondent
SIALKOT: After being put in to bat, Sialkot reached an impressive looking 337 for eight by the close of the opening day’s play, in their third-round, four-day 46th Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Cricket Championship match against Peshawar, here at the Jinnah Stadium on Monday. Three batsmen scored fifties, but got nowhere to making centuries.
Middle-order batsman Shahzad Malik was the top-scorer of the day, with 71 made off 154 balls in a little over three hours with 12 boundaries.
With the left-handed Qaiser Abbas, who contributed 54 off just 80 deliveries with 10 fours, his fifth-wicket stand was worth 93 runs.
Earlier, former Pakistan Under-17s team vice-captain Faisal Khan scored a worthy 61, that came off 109 balls in just less than two hours with the help of 10 fours.
Shahid Yousuf, with 23 that included a four and a six, helped Faisal put on 71 runs for the third wicket.
Opening bowler Fazl-e-Akbar took three wickets, but conceded 89 runs in his 20 overs.
Medium-pacer Jannisar Khan, the 22-year-old who after having played in the Under-15s World in England back in 1996 hasn’t played much cricket for Peshawar, captured three wickets for 57 runs in 12 overs in a rare appearance at the first-class level for his region.
Scoreboard
Peshawar won toss
Sialkot 1st inns
Faisal Naved c Aftab b Sajid 30
Tahir Mughal c Wajahatullah b Jannisar 16
Faisal Khan c Fayyaz b Fazl-e-Akbar 61
Shahid Yousuf c Wajahatullah b Arshad 23
Shahzad Malik b Jannisar 71
*Qaiser Abbas c Arshad b Fazl-e-Akbar 54
Kamran Younis lbw b Fazl-e-Akbar 1
Abdul Rehman b Jannisar 10
†Haafiz Khalid not out 27
Zahid Saeed not out 4
Extras (b4, lb7, w8, nb21) 40
Total (8 wkts, 90 overs) 337
To bat: Jaffer Nazir
Fall: 1-56, 2-60, 3-131, 4-154, 5-247, 6-261, 7-300, 8-311
Bowling: Fazl-e-Akbar 20-1-89-3 (11nb, 5w); Sajid Shah 14-3-48-1 (1w); Jannisar Khan 12-1-57-3 (9nb, 2w); Arshad Khan 18-1-62-1 (1nb); Noor-ul-Amin 24-6-65-0; Fayyaz Ahmed 2-0-5-0
Umpires: Aleem Dar and Asad Rauf. Match referee: Azmat Rana. Official scorer: Syed Najamus Saeed
Babar Naeem stars in Pindi’s big score
From our correspondent
LAHORE: Rawalpindi cleared the first psychological barrier as they rattled up 390 runs for the loss of seven wickets, in their 90 overs on the opening day of their third-round, four-day 46th Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Cricket Championship match against Lahore, here at the Lahore City Cricket Association (LCCA) Ground on Monday.
The magnificent first day score was made possible by a hundred by opening batsman Babar Naeem (149) and a late-order rally by Pakistan all-rounders Azhar Mahmood and Yasir Arafat. The 21-year-old left-handed Babar registered the fourth hundred of his first-class career and, in the course of his 32nd appearance at this level, also crossed an aggregate of 2,000 runs.
Rawalpindi’s appointed skipper Shoaib Akhtar, after having taken part in the previous day’s Quaid-e-Azam Cup National One-day Tournament match which Lahore won by five wickets, opted out of the four-day fixture and the captaincy was picked up again by Naved Ashraf. He included Azad Jammu & Kashmir’s 18-year-old Afaq Rahim in the line-up and dropped Bazid Khan, who was dismissed for a duck on Sunday.
Afaq on his first-class debut made a quick 20, off 27 balls with three fours, in the 30-run opening stand with Babar. Two wickets were gone for 45 before Bilal Asad (32 off 49 balls with five fours) helped Babar through a 64-run third-wicket stand. Lahore skipper Abdul Razzaq then dismissed Bilal and Naved, for a duck, at the same score of 109.
Sheeraz Khalid helped Babar add a useful 40 for the fifth wicket. Azhar, who had scored 73 and taken 3-53 in a lost cause in the limited-over match on Sunday, then proceeded to smack an incredible 75 runs off just 94 deliveries in a little over two and a quarter hours, with 16 boundaries.
His sixth-wicket partnership with Babar was worth 159 runs, which took the score beyond the 300-run mark. Babar later got trapped lbw by an Imran Farhat leg-break, having scored 149 that came off 241 balls in a stay at the crease of just over five and a half hours and included 23 fours and a six.
The last overs of the day were dominated by Yasir Arafat, who has so far scored an unbeaten 51. It has taken him 75 balls to make in almost an hour and a half with nine boundaries. With him at the wicket is pace bowler Junaid Zia, with 17 not out to his name, made off 46 balls and including two fours.
Scoreboard
Lahore won toss
Rawalpindi 1st inns
Babar Naeem lbw b Imran 149
Afaq Rahim b Wasim 20
Ashar Zaidi lbw b Irfan 4
Bilal Asad lbw b Razzaq 32
*Naved Ashraf c Kamran b Razzaq 0
Sheeraz Khalid lbw b Irfan 10
Azhar Mahmood lbw b Saqlain 75
Yasir Arafat not out 51
Junaid Zia not out 17
Extras (b1, lb4, w2, nb25) 32
Total (7 wkts, 90 overs) 390
To bat: †Mohammad Shahbaz, Najaf Shah
Fall: 1-30, 2-45, 3-109, 4-109, 5-149, 6-308, 7-334
Bowling: Wasim Khan 16-2-63-1 (6nb); Mohammad Khalil 23-3-92-0 (9nb, 2w); Irfan Fazil 10-0-73-2 (6nb); Abdul Razzaq 15-1-79-2 (4nb); Saqlain Mushtaq 19-5-56-1; Imran Farhat 7-2-22-1
Umpires: Afzaal Ahmed and Islam Khan. Match referee: Khatib Rizwan. Official scorer: Masood Ahmed
Salman Butt heroics fail to bring Lahore first innings lead
From our correspondent
LAHORE: Salman Butt’s fighting 137 narrowly failed to help Lahore to a first innings lead over Rawalpindi, on the third day of their third-round, four-day 46th Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Cricket Championshiop match, here at the Lahore City Cricket Association (LCCA) Ground on Wednesday and, by the day’s close, Rawalpindi had taken their overall advantage to 172 runs with eight second innings wickets still intact.
Resuming at their overnight 226 for three, short by 268 runs of Rawalpindi’s massive first innings score of 494 all out, Lahore put up an excellent display of brave and responsible batting. In the end, they lost out by just 34 runs after having replied with a total of 460. By stumps, Rawalpindi had reached 138 for two in their second turn at the batting crease.
The 19-year-old left-handed Salman, a former Pakistan junior teams captain, had not scored a hundred in his first 14 first-class matches - and a period spanning some 40 months. Now, he has made two in consecutive matches. Last week, at the Sheikhupura Stadium, he hit 122 while opening the innings in a Quaid-e-Azam Trophy game against Peshawar. Yesterday, he achieved the highest score of his career yet.
He occupied the crease for just over four hours, faced 193 deliveries and hit 23 boundaries while making 137 runs. With his overnight partner, wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal (39 off 64 balls with five fours), he helped add 95 runs for the fourth wicket. The left-handed Adil Nisar and Salman scored another 53 before the fifth wicket fell at 333.
Adil was then joined by skipper Abdul Razzaq (40 off only 45 balls with six fours) as the sixth-wicket stand produced 64 runs. But seamer Yasir Arafat, who finished with figures of 4-118, struck telling blows as three wickets fell at the same score of 397. With eight wickets gone, Lahore were still 97 runs behind.
Wasim Khan (28) was then engaged in an invaluable 40-run ninth-wicket stand with Adil. Another 23 were added by the last wicket, but Mohammad Khalil was run out, with 34 still required. Adil remained not out with 62, made off 126 balls in a little short of three and a half hours with 12 boundaries.
Rawalpindi’s second innings was powered by an 81-run unbroken stand for the third wicket. Sheeraz Khalid reached exactly 50 not out off 71 balls in 82 minutes with nine fours.
The left-handed Ashar Zaidi also struck form with an unbeaten 45, made off 79 balls in a just over two hours with seven hits to the ropes.
With the final day coming up today (Thursday), the match could very well be heading for a draw. This result would give Rawalpindi their first three points of the tournament while Lahore will remain stuck at nine.
Scoreboard
Lahore won toss
Rawalpindi 1st inns 494 (Babar Naeem 149, Azhar Mahmood 75, Yasir Arafat 64, Mohammad Shahbaz 41, Extras 42; Irfan Fazil 4-119)
Lahore 1st inns (overnight 226-3)
Imran Farhat c Babar b Azhar 0
Taufeeq Umar c Ashar b Najaf 86
Saleem Elahi c Naved b Yasir 28
Salman Butt lbw b Sheeraz 137
†Kamran Akmal c Shahbaz b Azhar 39
Adil Nisar not out 62
*Abdul Razzaq c Najaf b Yasir 40
Saqlain Mushtaq b Yasir 0
Irfan Fazil c Azhar b Yasir 0
Wasim Khan c Bilal b Najaf 28
Mohammad Khalil run out (Sheeraz/Bilal) 3
Extras (b3, lb5, w5, nb24) 37
Total (all out, 103.4 overs) 460
Fall: 1-0, 2-47, 3-185, 4-280, 5-333, 6-397, 7-397, 8-397, 9-437
Bowling: Azhar Mahmood 29-3-121-2 (3nb, 1w); Najaf Shah 16-3-77-2 (1nb); Yasir Arafat 28-5-118-4 (8nb, 3w); Junaid Zia 8-2-53-0 (4nb, 1w); Bilal Asad 2-0-11-0; Sheeraz Khalid 15.4-0-53-1 (8nb); Ashar Zaidi 5-0-19-0
Rawalpindi 2nd inns
Babar Naeem c Kamran b Khalil 22
Afaq Rahim c Kamran b Wasim 14
Ashar Zaidi not out 45
Sheeraz Khalid not out 50
Extras (b4, nb3) 7
Total (2 wkts, 33 overs) 138
To bat: Bilal Asad, *Naved Ashraf, Azhar Mahmood, Yasir Arafat, Junaid Zia, †Mohammad Shahbaz, Najaf Shah
Fall: 1-23, 2-57
Bowling: Wasim Khan 7-1-33-1 (2nb); Mohammad Khalil 9-2-40-1; Irfan Fazil 6-1-19-0 (1nb); Abdul Razzaq 7-3-18-0; Imran Farhat 1-0-7-0; Saqlain Mushtaq 3-0-17-0
Umpires: Afzaal Ahmed and Islam Khan. Match referee: Khatib Rizwan. Official scorer: Masood Ahmed
Sialkot reach the top after beating
Peshawar inside three days
From our correspondent
SIALKOT: With an emphatic eight-wicket triumph over Peshawar, on the third day of their third-round, four-day 46th Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Cricket Championship match, here at the Jinnah Stadium on Wednesday, Sialkot have elbowed past Faisalabad to the top of the competition’s points table. With the full nine points from their win with a full day to spare, they now have a total of 18 in three appearances in this, Pakistan’s premier first-class cricket tournament.
Peshawar were bowled out for 238 runs in their follow-on innings yesterday, which left Sialkot only 86 runs to win. They achieved the target quite comfortably, and in a casual manner, for the loss of their opening pair. Until Tuesday evening, both Sialkot and Peshawar had a similar record in the 2003-04 national cricket championship’s ranking table.
Both had collected nine points each, with a win and a draw from their respective two fixtures. Peshawar and Sialkot thus shared the second spot behind Faisalabad, who actually still have a match in hand as compared to these two, with 12 points from two matches of which they have won and drawn one each.
Peshawar, still needing 77 further runs to make Sialkot bat again, resumed at 76 for three on Wednesday morning. The two overnight batsmen Shoaib Khan and Rafatullah Mohmand extended their fourth-wicket partnership to 53 before the latter fell. The in-form Shoaib, having started the day at 26 not out, went on to make a worthy 57 - his sixth score of fifty plus in first-class cricket this season.
The 25-year-old, who in nine such matches has now totalled 672 runs at an average of 56.00, had scored a hundred (116) in Peshawar’s previous Quaid-e-Azam Trophy match against Lahore at Sheikhupura last week. His 57 in Sialkot came off a mere 69 balls with six boundaries in just short of an hour and three-quarters.
As expected, Peshawar skipper Wajahatullah Wasti, who had dropped himself from the opener’s spot to number six, played an innings of great character but a three-day win for Sialkot was always on the card. In a little over three hours at the crease, the 29-year-old who had played for Pakistan in six Tests and 15 One-day Internationals until the end of 1999-00, scored 74 runs while facing 114 balls and sending the ball to the ropes 10 times.
With Jannisar Khan (21) and Sajid Shah (22), Wajahatullah was involved in stands of 48 and 47 runs for the sixth and seventh wickets, respectively. But Sialkot’s first innings hero, left-arm pace bowler Zahid Saeed, returned for his first bowl of the second innings, taking three wickets for 42 runs in 10.1 overs to send Peshawar packing. He finished with a match haul of eight for 88.
Fellow pace bowler Tahir Mughal, who had gone wicketless in the first innings, captured three for 76 while new-ball operator Jaffer Nazir followed his 2-64 with figures of 2-52. Peshawar seamer Sajid Shah took both Sialkot second innings to fall as the home team coasted to an easy win.
In the first round matches, from February 9 to 12, Sialkot had drawn with Faisalabad at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad with the latter getting the three first innings lead points while, in the rain-afftected game at the Arbab Niaz Stadium Stadium in Peshawar, neither Peshawar nor Rawalpindi could gain any points as the first innings issue remained unresolved.
In the second round, Sialkot and Peshawar both won their matches against Multan and Lahore, respectively, inside three days and by the same margin - nine wickets - to gain the full nine points each.
National One-day Tournament and the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Championship, due to the holy month of Muharram-ul-Haraam. Matches will resume from Monday, March 7, with Sialkot hosting Rawalpindi here at the Jinnah Stadium. Peshawar will, however, not be seen in action until March 14 as they have no game scheduled in the fourth round.
Scoreboard
Peshawar won toss
Sialkot 1st inns 348 (Faisal Khan 61, Shahzad Malik 71, Qaiser Abbas 54, Extras 41; Fazl-e-Akbar 4-92)
Peshawar 1st inns 195 (Jannisar Khan 45; Zahid Saeed 5-46)
Peshawar 2nd inns (overnight 76-3)
†Ahmed Said lbw b Jaffer 4
Fayyaz Ahmed c Zahid b Tahir 12
Aftab Khan c Khalid b Jaffer 13
Shoaib Khan c Shahid b Tahir 57
Rafatullah Mohmand c Khalid b Tahir 20
*Wajahatullah Wasti b Zahid 74
Jannisar Khan c Shahid b Rehman 21
Sajid Shah c Kamran b Qaiser 22
Arshad Khan b Zahid 8
Noor-ul-Amin b Zahid 0
Kabir Khan not out 0
Extras (b2, lb4, nb1) 7
Total (all out, 66.1 overs) 238
Fall: 1-16, 2-16, 3-36, 4-89, 5-122, 6-170, 7-217, 8-233, 9-233
Bowling: Jaffer Nazir 13-2-52-2; Tahir Mughal 19-3-76-3 (1nb); Abdul Rehman 15-2-40-1; Qaiser Abbas 8-2-18-1; Zahid Saeed 10.1-1-42-3; Faisal Naved 1-0-4-0
Sialkot 2nd inns
Faisal Naved c Jannisar b Sajid 33
Tahir Mughal c & b Sajid 20
Faisal Khan not out 18
Shahid Yousuf not out 3
Extras (b4, lb2, w3, nb3) 12
Total (2 wkts, 23.4 overs) 86
Did not bat: Shahzad Malik, Qaiser Abbas, Kamran Younis, Abdul Rehman, *†Haafiz Khalid, Zahid Saeed, Jaffer Nazir
Fall: 1-55, 2-67
Bowling: Fazl-e-Akbar 3-0-4-0 (1nb); Sajid Shah 11.4-2-33-2 (2w); Jannisar Khan 3-0-30-0 (2nb, 1w); Arshad Khan 6-1-13-0
Result: Sialkot won by 8 wickets
Umpires: Aleem Dar and Asad Rauf. Match referee: Azmat Rana. Official scorer: Syed Najamus Saeed