LAHORE, April 5: A superb century by Test discard Mohammad Hafeez and equally fine batting by skipper Misbahul Haq and Asif Hussain enabled Faisalabad pile up 354 for five against Sialkot on the first day of the Pentangular Cup match at the Qadhafi Stadium on Wednesday.

Hafeez hit 113 off 116 balls and was involved in two profitable partnerships to put Faisalabad in a strong position.

Together with Asif (52 with eight fours and one six), Hafeez added 105 for the second wicket. Later, he put on 101 for the third wicket with Mohammad Zahid (43).

Misbah, another Pakistan reject, was unbeaten on 71 while adding 98 for the unfinished sixth-wicket stand with wicket-keeper Mohammad Salman (37).

Scoreboard

FAISALABAD (1st Innings):

Mohammad Hafeez c Khalid b Tahir 113

Imran Ali b Sarfraz 14

Asif Hussain c Sarfraz b Asim 52

Mohammad Zahid c Kashif b Tahir 43

Misbahul Haq not out 71

Ijaz Ahmed lbw b Asim 11

Mohammad Salman not out 37

EXTRAS (B-2, LB-6, NB-5) 13

TOTAL (for five wkts, 90 overs) 354

FALL OF WKTS: 1-19, 2-124, 3-225, 4-230, 5-256.

TO BAT: Ahmed Hayat, Shahid Nazir, Samiullah Niazi, Asad Ali.

BOWLING (to-date): Sarfraz Ahmed 23-3-70-1; Tahir Mughal 22-4-84-2 (1nb); Asim Butt 19-3-70-2 (1nb); Kashif Dawood 13-0-64-0 (3nb); Abdur Rahman 13-2-58-0.

SIALKOT: Inamul Haq, Atiqur Rahman, Mohammad Ayub, Shahzad Malik, Hafiz Majid, Abdur Rahman, Hafiz Khalid, Tahir Mughal, Kashif Dawood, Sarfraz Ahmed, Asim Butt.

UMPIRES: Salim Badar and Riazuddin.

MATCH REFEREE: Azhar Khan.

Opinion

Editorial

Iran stalemate
Updated 02 May, 2026

Iran stalemate

THE US and Iran are currently somewhere between war and peace. While a tenuous ceasefire — extended largely due to...
Tax shortfall
02 May, 2026

Tax shortfall

THE Rs684bn shortfall in tax collection during the first 10 months of the fiscal year is a continuation of a...
Teaching inclusion
02 May, 2026

Teaching inclusion

DISCRIMINATORY and exclusionary content in Punjab’s textbooks has been flagged in Inclusive Education for a United...
Water vision
01 May, 2026

Water vision

WATER insecurity in Pakistan has been building up for decades as per capita water availability has declined from...
Vaccine policy
01 May, 2026

Vaccine policy

PAKISTAN has finally approved its first National Vaccine Policy; a step the health ministry has rightly described as...
Labour rights
Updated 01 May, 2026

Labour rights

THE annual observance of May Day should move beyond statements about the state’s commitment to the rights of...