National U16 One-Day Tournament: wins for Central punjab, kpk and Northern punjab

Rawalpindi: An unbeaten 109 by Ubaid Shahid, his second century in the tournament, guided Central Punjab to a five-wicket win over Balochistan in the fourth round of the PCB National U16 One-Day Tournament at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Friday.

In other two matches, leg-spinner Ahmed Hussain’s maiden five-wicket haul guided Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to a 76-run win over Southern Punjab at the Rawal Cricket Ground, while Northern beat Sindh by a comfortable eight-wicket margin at the Ayub Park Ground.

Balochistan U16 v Central Punjab U16 at Pindi Cricket Stadium:

Ubaid scripted a five-wicket win for Central Punjab over Balochistan with his second century of the tournament. The batsman had scored his first in the opening round against Southern Punjab, which had garnered his team an eight-wicket win.

After being asked to bat first, Balochistan managed 243 – thanks to Abdul Saboor’s century –  before they were bowled out in the last over.

Balochistan were reeling at 31 for four, before wicketkeeper-batsman, Saboor, and Adil Ahmed stitched a 100-run partnership for the fifth-wicket.

Saboor top-scored with a 121 off 95 balls, which included 18 fours and three sixes. Adil scored 27 off 67 and struck three fours.

For Central Punjab, Ibtisam Rehman took three wickets for 40, while Awais Ali, Mohammad Shoban and Ubaid took two wickets apiece.

In reply, coming to bat at number three, Central Punjab’s Ubaid scored an unbeaten 109 off 99, which included 10 fours. He and Abdul Rehman (32 off 22 balls, three fours) contributed an undefeated 78 runs partnership for the sixth wicket.

With this win, Central Punjab are on the second position in the points table with six points, while Balochistan with one win from four outings are on the fifth spot.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U16 v Southern Punjab U16 at Rawal Cricket Ground:

Ahmed’s five wickets bundled out Southern Punjab for 73 in chase of 150, handing Khyber Pakhtunkhwa their second win in the tournament. After being asked to bat first, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were dismissed for 149 in 43.1 overs.

Only four batsmen including the top-scorer Shahzaib Khan (38) entered into the double figures.

For Southern Punjab, left-arm orthodox Arafat Ahmed took five wickets for 13 runs, while Mustaqeem Faisal grabbed four for 16 in 5.1 overs.

In reply, the openers provided a 35-run stand, the best for the losing team, before Southern Punjab were bowled out in the 32^nd over.

After this win, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are on the third position in points table ahead of Southern Punjab on net run-rate. Both teams share four points each.

Northern U16 v Sindh U16 at Ayub Park Ground:

Ihsan Ullah’s four wickets and an unbeaten 39 from Shamyl Hussain led Northern to a comprehensive eight-wicket win over Sindh and put them on top of the table with six points.

Sindh were dismissed for 98 in 26 overs after Northern captain decided to field first after winning the toss. Saad Baig top-scored with a 29-ball 27, hitting three fours and a six. Hassan Iqbal contributed 21 off 38 balls.

Besides leg-spinner Ihsan’s four for 18, Mohammad Ibraheem and Saad Masood chipped in with two wickets apiece for Northern.

Shamyl top-scored with an unbeaten 39 off 55, which included seven boundaries.

Sindh, after today’s loss, are at the bottom of the table with two points.

Scores in brief:

Central Punjab U16 beat Balochistan U16 by five wickets

Balochistan U16 243 all out, 44.2 overs (Abdul Saboor 121; Ibtisam Rehman 3-40, Awais Ali 2-36, Mohammad Shoban 2-47, Ubaid Ullah 2-55)

Central Punjab U16 245-5, 44.2 overs (Ubaid Shahid 109 not out, Abdul Rehman 32 not out)

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U16 beat Southern Punjab by 76 runs

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U16 149 all out, 43.1 overs (Shahzaib Khan 38, Ahmed Hussain 24; Arafat Ahmed 5-13, Mustaqeem Faisal 4-16)

Southern Punjab U16 73 all out, 31.4 overs (Arafat Ahmed 18, Moheer Saeed 18; Ahmed Hussain 5-13)

Northern U16 beat Sindh U16 by eight wickets

Sindh U16 98 all out, 26 overs (Saad Baig 27; Ihsan Ullah 4-18, Mohammad Ibraheem Sultan 2-18, Saad Masood 2-22)

Northern U16 99-2, 18.2 overs (Shamyl Hussain 39 not out, Amir Hassan 26 not out)

Fifth round fixtures (21 February):

Balochistan U16 v Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U16 – Pindi Cricket Stadium

Central Punjab U16 v Sindh U16 – Ayub Park Ground

Northern U16 v Southern Punjab U16 – Rawal Cricket Ground