Ahmed, Sajid, Zulfiqar contribute in victories for Central Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Southern Punjab on day three of Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Second XI round five matches

Lahore: Central Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Southern Punjab scored victories over Sindh, Balochistan and Northern, respectively, on day three of the fifth round of three-day non-first-class Quaid-e-Azam Trophy tournament on Thursday.

At NBP Sports Complex, Karachi, Sindh after resuming their second innings on 50 for the loss of four wickets were dismissed for 115 giving Central Punjab 243 runs to win the match. Ahmed Saifi took seven wickets for 46 runs.

In return, Central Punjab chased down the target of 243 runs for the loss of six wickets in 67.1 overs. Irfan Niazi top-scored with 77-ball 76 with two fours and five sixes. Abdullah Shafiq contributed 69 runs of 144 balls with four fours and a six.

Danish Aziz was the pick of the bowlers for Sindh with four wickets for 115 runs.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa beat Balochistan by seven wickets at Peshawar’s Hayatabad Sports Complex.

Starting the day, a mere 39 runs ahead, Balochistan were dismissed for 214 in 65.3 overs. Fahad Iqbal top-scored with 80 off 124 balls, laced with eight fours and a six.

Sajid Khan was the pick of the bowlers for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with six second innings wickets for 64 runs in 25 overs. He completed with match figures of 13 for 115 runs in 47 overs, Sajid’s dream run in the match also saw him score 92 runs in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s first innings.

Chasing 127 to win the match, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa achieved the target inside 25 overs with seven wickets in hand. Asad Afridi top-scored with a quick-fire unbeaten knock of 61 off 36 balls with nine fours and two sixes. Kamran Ghulam contributed an unbeaten 63-ball 51 with nine fours.

The duo stitched a 102-run unbeaten partnership for the fourth wicket.

Over at the Muzaffarabad Stadium, Southern Punjab recorded a convincing nine-wicket win over Northern. Resuming their second innings at 149 for two, Northern were bowled out for 237 in 79 overs. They were well-placed at 178 for one before a stunning collapsed triggered by spinners Zulfiqar Babar (five for 67) and Agha Salman (three for 75) saw them crash to 237-allout, Northern lost their last nine wickets for 59 runs. Umer Waheed made 78 runs while Shoaib Ahmed contributed 55.

Southern Punjab chased down the 49-run target for the loss of one wicket in 9.4 overs. Mukhtar Ahmed scored an unbeaten 29-ball 38, his innings included seven fours.

Scores in brief:

Sindh v Central Punjab, NBP Stadium, Karachi

Sindh 355 all out, 78.2 overs (Ahsan Ali 119, Ammad Alam 80; Suleman Shafqat 5-64, Raza Hasan 3-68) and 115 all-out, 52.3 overs (Saifullah Bangash 32; Ahmed Saifi 7-46) v Central Punjab 228, 80.4 overs (Raza Ali Dar 48, Farhan Khan 41 not out; Danish Aziz 4-66, Ashiq Ali 3-72) and 245-6, 67.1 overs (Irfan Niazi 76 not out, Abdullah Shafiq 69; Danish Aziz 4-115)

Result: Central Punjab won by four wickets

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa v Balochistan, Hayatabad Sports Complex, Peshawar

Balochistan 176 all-out, 67.2 overs (Shehzad Tareen 53, Awais Zia 32; Sajid Khan 7-51) and 214 all-out, 65.3 overs (Fahad Iqbal 80, Haseeb Azam 45, Awais Zia 34; Sajid Khan 6-64) v Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 264 all-out, 65.4 overs (Rehan Afridi 93, Sajid Khan 92; Gohar Faiz 5-46) and 127-3, 24.3 overs (Asad Afridi 61 not out, Kamran Ghulam 51 not out)

Result: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa won by seven wickets

Northern v Southern Punjab, Muzaffarabad Stadium, Muzaffarabad

Southern Punjab 306, 79 overs (Zain Abbas 126, Agha Salman 77; Salman Irshad 4-53, Shahzad Azam 4-54) and 52 for 1, 9.4 overs (Mukhtar Ahmed 38 not out) v Northern 117, 40.5 overs (Zulfiqar Babar 4-23, Zia-ul-Haq 3-27) and after follow-on 237, 79 overs (Umer Waheed 78, Shoaib Ahmed 55; Zulfiqar Babar 5-67, Agha Salman 3-75)

Result: Southern Punjab won by nine wickets