HBL meet Lahore Whites in desperate state of mind

KARACHI: With the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy National Cricket Championship entering the decisive fourth round, Habib Bank Limited (HBL) must brush up their act as they are languishing in the danger zone after successive three draws and having just three points to their credit.

Winners of the now defunct Silver League segment last season, HBL will aim to secure their first victory in the competition when they take on Lahore Whites at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Their prospects have received a big fillip with the return of their star batsman Asad Shafiq, one of the success stories of Pakistan’s 2-0 Test win over England recently.

The disadvantage aspect from HBL’s perspective is that from next round onwards, they will have the likes of NBP, KRL and Wapda as their opponents. Therefore, if the bankers want to keep alive their aspirations for the Super Eight stage, they must beat Lahore Whites.

Pool ‘B’ leaders National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) face Rawalpindi at the latter’s home territory with the knowledge that their long-serving skipper Kamran Akmal and opener Nasir Jamshed are both available after their scheduled departure for the Bangladesh Premier League has been delayed by a few more days.

Karachi Whites are another side which needs a lot of catching up to do following their crushing defeat by innings and 23 runs against the NBP last week. Tauseef Ahmed, the head coach, was struggling to find the proper combination after regular skipper Faisal Iqbal missed the NBP thrashing because of one-match suspension for slow over-rate in the second-round fixture against HBL.

Second-placed Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) will provide stiff opposition to the Karachi side, particularly if seamer Mohammad Abbas continues his great form in the championship. The 25-year-old from Sialkot currently tops the averages with 22 victims, including nine in the come-from-behind win against the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) in his hometown last Wednesday.

United Bank Limited (UBL) will be eyeing another good result as the Pool ‘A’ leaders meet Hyderabad at the Niaz Stadium with their appointed skipper Younis Khan yet to make his debut for the new employers after abruptly announcing his retirement from One-day Internationals earlier in the week, and leaving Test opener Shan Masood in charge of the UBL side for the upcoming fixture.

Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), presently lying second in Pool ‘A’, take on Lahore Blues at the LCCA Ground in Lahore. Fresh from their success against Hyderabad, SNGPL will be keen to keep the momentum going despite the off-field controversies surrounding Umar Akmal, who hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons and has been overlooked for next week’s Twenty20 series against England in the UAE.

Fourth-round schedule (Nov 16-19):

Pool ‘A’: Hyderabad vs United Bank Limited (Niaz Stadium, Hyderabad); Lahore Blues vs Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore); Islamabad vs Sui Southern Gas Company (Diamond Club Ground, Islamabad); Peshawar vs Port Qasim Authority (Arbab Niaz Stadium, Peshawar).

Pool ‘B’: Karachi Whites vs Khan Research Laboratories (National Stadium, Karachi); Lahore Whites vs Habib Bank Limited (LCCA Ground, Lahore); Federally Administered Tribal Areas vs Wapda (Jinnah Stadium, Sialkot); Rawalpindi vs National Bank of Pakistan (Pindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi).

Current standings

(Tabulated under played, won, lost, drawn, points):

Pool ‘A’

SSGC 2 1 0 1 10

United Bank 3 2 0 1 20

SNGPL 3 1 0 2 15

SSGC 3 1 0 2 11

Port Qasim 3 1 0 2 10

Peshawar 3 0 0 3 4

Hyderabad 3 0 2 1 3

Lahore Blues 3 0 2 1 3

Islamabad 3 0 1 2 1