Bureau Report
Karachi: Southern Punjab’s top-order batsman Hussain Talat smashed his maiden double-century to guide his team to take 342-runs lead over Northern in first round of Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2020-21.
The left-handed batsman smashed 33 boundaries and six maximums to score 253 runs to lead his team from the front. On the other end, skipper Shan Masood held the bowlers tight and smashed 134 runs off 185 deliveries with the help of 17 boundaries.
The left-handed duo scored 185 runs together to put a solid second-wicket stand against the opposition at National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) Sports Complex.
Hussain Talat (253) and Shan Masood (134) send Northern on a leather chase
Opener Umar Siddique contributed 40 while Bilawal Bhatti notched 31 runs off 44 balls including three boundaries and a six.
Nauman Ali bagged four wickets while Athar Mahmood took three scalps for Northern.
In reply, Northern closed day 2 at 31-3 with Faizan Riaz (1) and Asif Ali (3) being not out. Mohammad Abbas bagged two wickets and Salman Ali Agha took one to restrict the opponents on the second day.
Now, SP is leading the match by 311 runs. At National Stadium Karachi, defending champion Central Punjab held Sindh to 196-6. In reply of CP’s 207-10, Sindh were off to a decent start with Khurram Manzoor and Omair Bin Yousuf who scored 39 runs together but back-to-back wickets off Waqas Maqsood put the batting side under pressure.
