KARACHI: The opening day of the third-round fixture in the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy National Cricket Championship at the National Stadium on Monday saw an indescribable run-rate of less than two runs as Karachi Whites adopted a negative approach to muster a measly 166-7 against Pool ‘B’ leaders National Bank of Pakistan (NBP).

On a pitch that held no terror whatsoever the sight of most batsmen becoming virtual stroke-less wonders was simply inexcusable. The play-safe tactics in their previous games — Wapda and Habib Bank — saw the regional side, who have former Test spinner Tauseef Ahmed as head coach, worked to the extent of them taking first-innings lead in tedious draws.

Playing with the same mindset didn’t materialise as the NBP bowlers, led by young left-arm paceman Zia-ul-Haq, throttled the flow of runs after Kamran Akmal had invited Karachi Whites to bat first at the toss.

The first session yielded a total of 43 runs in 29 overs with Zia dismissing Haris Ali Khan (1) early in the piece via an acrobatic effort behind the stumps by a diving Kamran.

The post-lunch period saw only 55 runs being accumulated in 31 overs of torturous cricket as Karachi Whites limped to 98-4 at tea interval. There was some relief, however, in the final session chiefly because of rare positive intent shown by the talented Saad Ali.

The 22-year-old left-hander, a former Pakistan U-19 representative who is growing in stature with every match and having began this season with a brace of 49s, played pleasing strokes to complete an excellent half-century. But a lapse of concentration shortly after the second new ball arrived cost Saad (60 off 148 balls, six boundaries) his wicket as an attempted pull against Zia was safely poached at mid-on.

Zia then grabbed a deserved fourth wicket in the same over when night-watchman Sohaib Khan had his off-stump uprooted to enable NBP to take all honours. In between there was only other innings of note from opener Jaahid Ali who batted for 204 minutes to make 47 from 165 balls with three fours.

The onset of winter has already played havoc with the matches taking place in the northern regions. Heavy fog curtailed action in six fixtures. Only 12.1 overs were possible in Rawalpindi where the hosts collected 49-2 after being put into bat by Habib Bank.

Islamabad reached 123-3 in 35 overs of action at the Diamond Club Ground after Port Qasim Authority skipper Mohammad Salman called correctly at the toss.

Hosts Peshawar batted positively to post 217-6 in 65 overs after losing the toss against Sui Southern Gas Company at the Arbab Niaz Stadium.

Fata were struggling at 106-5 at the Jinnah Stadium in Sialkot where Khan Research Laboratories opted to bowl first.

In the two Lahore fixtures, batsmen seemingly dominated early play. United Bank Limited were nicely placed at 176-2 in 60.2 overs after Lahore Blues chose to field first at the Gaddafi Stadium. Test opener Shan Masood, skippering the bankers, struck eight fours in his 70 off 149 deliveries while putting 116 for the second wicket with Umair Khan (57 not out).

Just 39 overs were delivered at the LCCA Ground during which Lahore Whites made a decent start of 104-1 after the toss against Wapda losing, thanks to a 83-run stand provided by Mukhtar Ahmed (49) and Sami Aslam (40 not out).

The only other match to escape uncertain playing conditions saw Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) vindicate their skipper Taufiq Umar’s decision to bat while reaching 331 all out in their first innings against Hyderabad at the Niaz Stadium.

Opener Imran Butt (51) helped Taufiq (67) add 126 for the second wicket before Imran Khalid made an invaluable contribution of 51 at No.9.

By close of play Hyderabad, fresh from a crushing innings and 379-run thrashing against SSGC, survived two overs without losing a wicket.

Close of play scores on Monday (day one of four):

Third round:

Pool ‘A’:

At Niaz Stadium, Hyderabad: SUI NORTHERN GAS PIPELINES LIMITED 331 in 78.4 overs (Taufiq Umar 67,

Imran Butt 58, Imran Khalid 51, Adnan Akmal 36, Abu Bakar Khan 23; Hazrat Shah 3-82, Kashif Bhatti 2-64, Babar Khan 2-67); HYDERABAD 4-0 in 2 overs.

At Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore: UNITED BANK LIMITED 176-2 in 60.2 overs (Shan Masood 70, Umair Khan 57, Sharjeel Khan 39; Mohammad Saeed 2-37) vs LAHORE BLUES.

At Diamond Club Ground, Islamabad: ISLAMABAD 123-3 in 35 overs (Abid Ali 58 not out, Shahid Yousuf 36 not out; Zohaib Shera 2-55) vs PORT QASIM AUTHORITY.

At Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar: PESHAWAR 217-6 in 65 overs (Akbar Badshah 53, Israrullah 48, Adil Amin 25, Zohaib Khan 25, Musadiq Ahmed 25; Tabish Khan 3-50, Sohail Khan 2-67) vs SUI SOUTHERN GAS COMPANY.

Pool ‘B’:

At National Stadium, Karachi: KARACHI WHITES 166-7 in 86 overs (Saad Ali 60, Jaahid Ali 47, Mohammad Hasan 21 not out Mohammad Waqas 20; Zia-ul-Haq 4-34) vs NATIONAL BANK OF PAKISTAN.

At LCCA Ground, Lahore: LAHORE WHITES 104-1 in 39 overs (Mukhtar Ahmed 49, Sami Aslam 40 not out) vs WAPDA.

At Jinnah Stadium, Sialkot: FEDERALLY ADMINISTERED TRIBAL AREAS 106-5 in 56 overs (Fawad Khan 26, Rehan Afridi 21; Mohammad Abbas 3-38) vs KHAN RESEARCH LABORATORIES.

At Pindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi: RAWALPINDI 49-2 in 12.1 overs (Babar Naeem 22 not out, Naved Yasin 18 not out; Umar Gul 2-25); vs HABIB BANK LIMITED.

Published in Dawn, November 10th, 2015