WAPDA, Ghani Glass, SNGPL make triumphant President's Trophy start

KARACHI: Former champions Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), Ghani Glass and Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) won their respective first-round matches of the President's Trophy Grade-I here on Tuesday.

At the National Bank Stadium here, Bismillah Khan's anchoring knock helped WAPDA chase down the modest 163-run target in 46 overs for the loss of four wickets to register a comfortable victory over Khan Research Laboratories (KRL).

Bismillah top-scored for WAPDA in the second innings with an 84-ball 46, while middle-order batter Sharoon Siraj and opening batter Imran Dogar made handy contributions with 33 and 24, respectively.

For KRL, Ahmed Bashir could take two wickets, while Mohammad Hamza and Ahmad Hassan bagged one apiece in the second innings.

At the commencement of the penultimate day, KRL resumed their second innings from 189/7 and could add eight more to their overnight score for the remaining three wickets and were thus bowled out for a meagre 197 in 52.2 overs.

Waqar Ahmed remained the top-scorer with his brisk 52-run knock, followed by opening batter Shahzaib Khan's 51, which came on the second day, while skipper Sarmad Bhatti made a gutsy 36 on the decisive day.

Mohammad Adil was the pick of the bowlers for WAPDA in the second innings as he took four wickets for 42 runs in his 12 overs, while Aqib Khan (3/59) and Naqeebulahh (3/43) shared six between them.

At the NBP Sports Complex, Athar Mehmood's five-wicket haul in the second innings led SNGPL to an innings and 151-run victory over Sahir Associates in the first-round fixture of the President's Trophy Grade-I.

Earlier in the day, Sahir Associates resumed their second innings from 68/3 after being enforced to follow on and could accumulate 288 before getting bowled out in 82.2 overs despite top-order batter Mohammad Basit's century.

Basit remained the top-scorer with 107 off 195 deliveries, followed by Mohammad Faiq (54) and skipper Asim Ali Nasir (71), who made anchoring half-centuries.

Athar led SNGPL's bowling charge with a five-wicket haul, while Shahnawaz Dahani bagged two wickets. Mohammad Salman and Sajid Khan, on the other hand, chipped in with one apiece.

In the third match of the eight-team tournament, Ghani Glass chased down the modest 78-run target for the loss of three wickets to hand Oil and Gas Development Authority (OGDCL) a thumping defeat.

At the commencement of the third day, OGDCL resumed their second innings from 75/2, leading by a slender 25 runs, but could add 52 more to their overnight score and were thus bundled out for a meagre 127 in 45 overs.

Overnight batters Israrullah and Abdul Rehman Muzammil remained the notable run-getters for OGDCL, making 37 and 32, respectively, while Umar Siddiq (16) and Mushtaq Ahmed (10) were the other two batters to amass double figures.

Afaq Afridi led Ghani Glass's bowling charge in the second innings with a five-wicket haul, followed by Mir Hamza with three, while Ubaid Shah made two scalps.

In turn, Ghani Glass made light work of the 78-run target as they amassed the total in 24.1 overs. Experienced opener Sharjeel Khan remained their top-scorer with a 23-ball 21.

For OGDCL, Arshadullah, Mohammad Amir Khan and Mushtaq could take one wicket apiece.

In another first-round match between the previous edition's runners-up, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) were on the verge of a massive defeat at the hands of defending champions Pakistan Television (PTV).

At the stumps on day three, SBP were 148/8 while chasing a 240-run target, with Rameez Aziz and No.10 batter Mohammad Ismail, unbeaten on 31 and zero, respectively.

Earlier in the day, PTV resumed their second innings from 191/5 and went on to finish at 293 all out in 72.5 overs, courtesy of Mohammad Suleman's anchoring century.

The middle-order batter remained the top-scorer for the defending champions with 100 off 175 deliveries, studded with 10 fours and four sixes. He was supported by emerging all-rounder Arafat Minhas, who played a sensible 81-run knock.

Mohammad Abbas led SBP's bowling charge with three wickets, followed by Kashif Ali, Niaz Khan and Qasim Akram with two each, while Ismail chipped in with one.