April 10, 2008	Thursday	Rabi-us-Sani 3, 1429

KARACHI, April 9: Despite missing the services of three top stars, Habib Bank are favourites to claim their 14th domestic limited-overs trophy when they face Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) in the ABN-Amro National One-day Cup final at the National Stadium here on Thursday.

Regular skipper Younis Khan, flamboyant all-rounder Shahid Afridi and Umar Gul are currently involved in the one-day series against the touring Bangladesh side. SNGPL too are without their most dependable batsman Misbah-ul-Haq, the Pakistan vice-captain.

For the bankers, the day/night final provides them with the chance of avenging their loss in the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy, which was won for the first time by Mohammad Hafeez’s men in early January on first-innings lead as the five-day final ended in a draw.

Both these teams scored comprehensive victories in the semi-finals. Habib Bank staged a dramatic comeback to beat National Bank by five wickets with two overs to spare at the same venue, while SNGPL trounced KRL in the other pre-final at the NBP Sports Complex by 91 runs.

In the absence of Younis and Afridi, the bankers will rely heavily on their in-form batsmen Riffatullah Mohmand and Aftab Khan. But the most heartening aspect of their success in Monday’s semi-final was Danish Kaneria’s triumphant return to the side.

Slow left-armer Abdul Rehman is in top form as well with 21 wickets to his credit. He has the chance of winning the best bowler award since he requires just two more wickets to become the leading wicket-taker in the tournament. KRL’s Pakistan pacer Yasir Arafat bagged 22 wickets.

The Pakistan leggie’s new bowling action, which resembles to that of a certain Shane Warne, gave more control over his line and length. He was amply rewarded with four wickets.

SNGPL, meanwhile, look to the experienced Hafeez and Azhar Shafiq to give them solidity without having Misbah in the middle-order. Umar Akmal, younger brother of Pakistan wicket-keeper Kamran, is capable of firing on the big occasion.

Their bowling also looks portent with the likes of Samiullah Niazi and Asad Ali, their leading new-ball striker with 18 scalps under his belt.

The match is slated to start at 12.30pm.

Teams (from):

HABIB BANK: Sajid Shah (captain), Riffatullah Mohmand, Farhan Iqbal, Aftab Khan, Khaqan Arsal, Salman Qadir, Kamran Hussain, Abdul Rehman, Aslam Qureshi, Fahad Masood, Danish Kaneria, Irfan Fazil, Imran Nazir Jr.

SNGPL: Mohammad Hafeez (captain), Yasir Arafat Jr, Azhar Shafiq, Umar Akmal, Khurram Shahzad, Saleem Mughal, Adnan Akmal, Imran Khalid, Imran Ali, Asad Ali, Samiullah Niazi, Tauqir Hussain, Ali Wqas.

Umpires: Zameer Haider and Ahmed Shahab.

TV umpire: Afzaal Ahmed.

Match referee: Ishtiaq Ahmed.