Batsmen survive to earn draw for Balochistan

Rawalpindi: Balochistan batsmen survived on the fourth and final day to earn a draw for their team in the first-class Quaid-e-Azam Trophy match against Northern at the KRL Stadium on Tuesday.

Needing 299 runs to win in a possible 76 overs, Balochistan finished on 183 for seven in 67 overs. Yasir Shah (14 not out) and Khurram Shahzad (zero not out) were at the crease when bad light ended play.

Northern had scored 450 all out in the first innings and Balochistan replied with 301 all out. The Umar Amin-led team then declared their second innings on 149-3 in 30 overs with an overall lead of 298.

Balochistan’s run chase was never on as after getting a decent start of 40 runs, they kept losing wickets at regular intervals.

In the end they had to fight hard to survive Northern bowlers’ charge. Imran Butt (59) scored his second half-century of the match with the help of seven boundaries. Other healthy contributions came from the bats of captain Imran Farhat (33) and Bismillah Khan (33).

Part-time leg-spinner Faizan Riaz and fast-bowler Haris Rauf bagged two wickets each for 16 and 58 runs, respectively. Nauman Ali and Musa Khan had one apiece.

Earlier, Northern added 74 more runs in 12 overs to their overnight score of 75 for no loss with young Haider Ali and Zeeshan Malik leading the way.  Zeeshan, who resumed his innings on 54 not out, was out for 68. He hit nine fours and a six in his 78-ball knock.

Haider added a fifty to his first innings century. The right-handed opener’s 54 included two fours and a six and came off 83 deliveries. Nauman Ali, promoted up the order, added 19 runs in 15 balls with the help of two fours and a six.

For Balochistan, Khurram Shahzad claimed two wickets for 35 runs while Amad Butt had 1-42.

At the end of the fourth round, Balochistan are fifth with 34 points while Northern are at the bottom of the table with 32 points.

Scores in brief:

Northern 450 all out, 105.4 overs (Faizan Riaz 141, Haider Ali 133, Ali Sarfraz 50, Umar Amin 34; Amad Butt 3-57, Mohammad Asghar 2-62, Taj Wali 2-108, Yasir Shah 2-119) and 149-3 declared in 30 overs (Zeeshan Malik 68, Haider Ali 54, Nauman Ali 19; Khurram Shahzad 2-35, Amad Butt 1-42).

Balochistan 301 all out, 101.5 overs (Asif Zakir 61, Imran Butt 59, Abubakar Khan 50, Bismillah Khan 30, Amad Butt 23; Nauman Ali 5-52, Haris Rauf 3-73) and 183-7 in 67 overs (Imran Butt 59, Imran Farhat 33, Bismillah Khan 33, Yasir Shah 14 not out; Faizan Riaz 2-16, Haris Rauf 2-58).