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KARACHI: Wapda improved their chances of reaching the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy National Cricket Championship's Division One final by declaring their first innings at 360-9 on the second day of their last-round fixture against ZTBL at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad on Saturday.
Ali Azmat led the run-scoring with 79 that included 12 fours while tailender Umaid Asif used the long handle to good effect with 47 after Wapda resumed at the overnight 160-5.ZTBL, in reply, lost the key wicket of Pakistan reject Yasir Hameed (18) before reaching stumps at 34-1.
Habib Bank, who lead the standings, were 19 without loss in nine overs after their rain-marred match against SNGPL finally began following no play on Friday at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. PIA and National Bank watched in vain at the adjacent LCCA Ground where for the second day running there was no play.
Rawalpindi, also bidding to reach the final, made a good start by reducing Sialkot, who surprised everybody by opting to bat first after the opening day's action was washed out, to 89-5 in 29 overs. Paceman Rizwan Akbar's impressive season saw him claimed three for 31 in 10 overs.
Islamabad overcame a poor start — 48-4 — to score 189 for five in reply to hosts Multan's first-innings total of 244 at the Multan Cricket Stadium with Kashif Majeed making 61.
Karachi Blues earned a handy lead of 72 runs on the first innings against Faisalabad after being dismissed for 264 here at the National Stadium. Rameez Raja was their top-scorer with a 55-ball innings of 67, which included 13 boundaries.
Slow left-armer Hasan Mahmood, who was joint top-scorer with 43 in Faisalabad's innings on Friday, bagged five for 58 with slow left-armers. Medium-pacer Ahmed Hayat took three for 31 in five overs.
Scores on Saturday (day two of four):
Division One:
At Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore: HABIB BANK 19-0 in 9 overs v SNGPL.
At LCCA Ground, Lahore: NATIONAL BANK v PIA — no play due to rain.
At Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad: WAPDA 360-9 declared in 101.3 overs (Ali Azmat 79, Riffatullah Mohmand 62, Umaid Asif 47, Sohaib Maqsood 38, Sarfraz Ahmed 33, Kashif Raza 31 not out; Zohaib Khan 3-45, Rehan Riaz 2-66, Kashif Dawood 2-81); ZTBL 34-1 in 8 overs.
At National Stadium, Karachi: FAISALABAD 192 in 84.2 overs (Farrukh Shahzad 43, Hasan Mahmood 43; Mansoor Ahmed 4-41, Babar Rehman 3-57); KARACHI BLUES 264 in 78.2 overs (Rameez Raja 67, Owais Ahmed Rehmani 45, Babar Rehman 34 not out, Saeed bin Nasir 31; Hasan Mahmood 5-58, Ahmed Hayat 3-31).
At Jinnah Stadium, Sialkot: SIALKOT 89-5 in 29 overs (Hafiz Majid Jahangir 34; Rizwan Akbar 3-31) v RAWALPINDI.
At Multan Cricket Stadium: MULTAN 244 in 69.2 overs (Kashif Naveed 80, Imranullah Aslam 51, Tariq Nadeem 36; Kamran Hussain 4-79, Nasarullah Khan 2-35, Rauf Akbar 2-43); ISLAMABAD 189-6 in 57 overs (Kashif Majeed 61, Imad Wasim 39 not out; Abdur Rauf 2-51, Tahir Maqsood 2-51).
