KARACHI: Three of the four matches in the opening round of the President’s Trophy decided on the third day as Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL), Wapda and Ghani Glass registered victories at different venues here on Tuesday.

In the remaining fixture between Pakistan Television (PTV) and State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the defending champions were left on the brink of defeat as stumps were drawn with PTV needing two more wickets to seal victory, while SBP required a further 92 runs at the State Bank Stadium.

At the NBP Sports Complex, fast bowler Ather Mehmood spearheaded SNGPL’s innings and 151-run triumph over Sahir Associates, returning figures of five for 66 in 18.2 overs, including six maidens.

Resuming their second innings on 68-3 after being asked to follow on, Sahir Associates were dismissed for 288 in 82.2 overs despite a fighting century from Mohammad Basit, who struck 107 off 195 balls with 14 fours.

Basit shared a 114-run partnership with Mohammad Faiq (54 off 110 balls) for the fourth wicket before pacer Mohammad Salman broke the stand in the 49th over.

Skipper Asim Ali Nasir (71 off 98 balls) then combined with Basit in an 87-run stand to lift the total to 255-4, but a collapse followed as Sahir Associates lost six wickets for 33 runs.

Apart from Ather’s five-wicket haul — his third in first-class cricket — Shahnawaz Dahani claimed two wickets, while Salman and Sajid Khan picked up one each.

Wapda secured a six-wicket win over Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) at the National Bank Stadium, chasing down a target of 163. Bismillah Khan top-scored with 46 off 84 balls, while Sharoon Siraj contributed 33 off 46 deliveries.

The pair added 64 runs for the third wicket after openers Imran Dogar (24) and Mohammad Akhlaq (19) put on 35. Ayaz Tasawar remained unbeaten on 21.

For KRL, Ahmed Bashir took two wickets for 35 runs, while Mohammad Hamza and Ahmad Hassan claimed one apiece. Earlier, KRL were bowled out for 197 in their second innings.

Ghani Glass completed a seven-wicket victory over Oil and Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL) after chasing down a modest 78-run target in 24.1 overs. OGDCL had earlier collapsed from 75-2 to 127 all out, losing eight wickets for 52 runs.

Pacer Afaq Afridi led Ghani Glass’ bowling effort with figures of five for 30 from 13 overs — his fifth first-class five-wicket haul — supported by Mir Hamza (three wickets) and Ubaid Shah (two).

At the State Bank Stadium, SBP were 148-8 at stumps in pursuit of a 240-run target, with Rameez Aziz unbeaten on 31. Mohammad Hurraira top-scored with 76 off 80 balls, but his run-out triggered a collapse as SBP lost four wickets for 14 runs in the space of 15 balls.

Musa Khan claimed five wickets for 45 runs — his 10th five-wicket haul in first-class cricket — while Mehran Sanwal and Amad Butt took one wicket each.

Earlier, PTV were dismissed for 293 in their second innings after resuming on 191-5, with Mohammad Suleman scoring his fifth first-class century. Suleman added 93 runs for the seventh wicket with Arafat Minhas, who struck 81 off 99 balls.

For SBP, Mohammad Abbas took three wickets, while Qasim Akram, Niaz Khan and Kashif Ali claimed two each.

Published in Dawn, December 31st, 2025