Bureau Report
Karachi: Sindh and Northern claimed thrilling wins while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recorded a one-sided win over Balochistan in the third round of the Pakistan Cup One-Day Tournament 2020-21 for Second XIs played on Sunday.
In the first match played at KCCA Stadium in Karachi, KP beat Balochistan by 126 runs. Sahibzada Farhan top-scored with 53 off 88 balls (four fours, one six) and Mehran Ibrahim contributed 50 off 59 balls (four fours), leading KP to 262/7 in 50 overs. Balochistan’s Zainullah took three wickets for 55 runs.
Balochistan were dismissed for 136 runs in 34.5 overs Abdul Rehman Muzamil top-scored with 53 runs off 81 balls (three fours, one six) while no other batter showed resilience against KP’s strong bowling attack.
Maaz Sadaqat took three wickets for 21 runs while Asad Afridi took two for eight in 2.5 overs.
At TMC Ground, Northern claimed a thumping one-wicket win over Southern Punjab. Northern chased down the target of 204 in the second ball of the last over.
Umar Waheed scored 72 off 77 balls, powered by a four boundaries and a six while Shoaib Ahmed made 30 runs. Mohammad Junaid took three while Ahsan Baig took two wickets.
Earlier, Southern Punjab was rolled over for 203 after being put to bat first. Opener Mukhtar Ahmed smacked 99 runs (11 fours, one six) while Waqar Hussain scored 55 runs, however the rest of the batting line-up failed to get going.
Pacer Aamer Jamal with five wickets for 37 runs was the pick of the Northern bowlers. Aamer’s new-ball partner Salman Irshad took two wickets.
At NBP Sports Complex, Sindh claimed its second consecutive win of the competition, beating Central Punjab by two runs.
CP won the toss and opt to bowl first. Left-hander Rameez Aziz (74) guide Sindh to 220/8 in 50 overs. Off-spinner Haseeb-ur-Rehman Jr took three wickets for 34 runs while Raza Ali Dar took two wickets for 31 runs.
