KARACHI: Experienced spinner Asif Afridi took five wickets as Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) restricted Sahir Associates to 245/8. On the opening day of the fourth round President Cup Grade-1 tournament at the KCCA Stadium on Thursday.
Middle-order batsman Mohammad Saleem, unbeaten on 40, joins No. 10 Khan Saif to resume Sahir Associates’ first innings on day two.
Sahir Associates, however, had a mixed start to their innings as they were reduced to 32/2 inside 14 overs before Mohammad Faiq’s half-century and skipper Asim Ali Naseer’s third-wicket stand of 97 started the recovery.
Faik top-scored with 93 off 188 balls, while Azim scored 59 off 115 balls.
Asif was the best bowler for the OGDCL on the opening day, returning impressive figures of 5/72 in 33.1 overs, while Mohammad Husaifa, Jawad Ali and skipper Adil Amin claimed a scalp each.
Shejad Gul took four wickets as Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Ltd (SNGPL) bowled out defending champions Pakistan Television for 166 in 66.2 overs at the National Bank Stadium here.
All-rounder Amat Bhatt scored an unbeaten 46 off 64 balls, followed by top-order batsman Mohammad Taha’s 38 off 129 balls.
Shezad took 4 wickets for 40 runs in his 16.2 overs while Shahnawaz Dahani and Sajid Khan took 2 wickets each.
In reply, SNGPL had reached 58/3 in 18 overs before stumps were drawn at the iconic venue.
Top-order batsman Omair Bin Yousuf and night watchman Mohammad Ali remained unbeaten on 26 and 4 respectively to start their reply the next day trailing by 108 runs with seven wickets in hand.
Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) moved to a first innings lead of just 14 runs against Ghani Glass on the opening day of their fourth round President’s Cup Grade-I match at the UBL Sports Complex.
Opting to bat first, Ghani Glass was bowled out for 142 in 46.4 overs despite middle-order batsman Ali Razak’s unbeaten half-century.
Ali scored an unbeaten 64 off 108 balls with 8 fours and 2 sixes. Apart from him, only Dayab Tahir (33) and Saad Nasim (10) managed to score double centuries.
Naqeebullah led WAPDA’s bowling with 3 wickets for 46 runs in his 12 overs, followed by Mohammad Zeeshan, Mujtaba Khan and captain Khalid Usman with two each, while Mohammad Adil had a strike.
In turn, WAPDA had amassed 129/4 in 33 overs at the close of play on the first day, reducing the deficit to just 13 runs with 6 wickets in hand.
Middle-order batsman Ayaz Dasawar and night watchman Mujtaba remained unbeaten on 42 and zero respectively to resume WAPDA’s reply on day two.
Earlier, opener Muhammad Akhlaq scored 38 off 45 balls with 4 fours and 2 sixes.
For the Ghani Class side, captain Noman Ali has taken 3 wickets and Khurram Shahzad has taken one wicket so far.
Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) took the lead over State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) on the opening day of the remaining fourth round President Cup Grade-1 match at the SBP Sports Complex.
Batting first, the home side managed to post 106 runs in 38.2 overs despite the anchorage of Mohammad Kazi Khori.
Wicketkeeper Batter stood tall for the home team with 40, while tailenders Kaship Bhatti (16) and Niaz Khan (11) scored double figures.
Mohammad Hamzah led KRL’s bowling charge with four wickets, while Ahmed Basheer and Abdul Wahid grabbed three wickets each.
In reply, KRL amassed 135/3 in 38 overs thanks to Waqar Ahmed’s unbeaten half-century.
Waqar, unbeaten on 57 off 87 balls, would continue KRL’s reply on day two with Imran Rafiq scoring 25 off 61 balls with the help of 3 fours.
For SBP, Rameez Aziz took 2 wickets for 26 runs in his 5 overs and Niaz took one wicket.