KARACHI: Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) staged a remarkable comeback to beat Pakistan Television (PTV) by six wickets on the third day of the sixth round of the President’s Trophy Grade-I at the Shoaib Akhtar Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi on Wednesday, while MIT Solutions (MIT) strengthened their position against State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) at the Diamond Cricket Ground in Islamabad.

Resuming their second innings at 44-2 with a lead of 135 runs, PTV were bowled out for 132, with Saqib Khan claiming five wickets for 37 runs.

Chasing a target of 224, KRL reached 227-4 in 41.4 overs, thanks to an unbeaten 76 off 82 balls from Iftikhar Ahmed and an unbeaten 50 from Imran Rafiq. Asim Ali Nasir also made a valuable contribution, scoring 47.

Earlier, KRL had been dismissed for 129 in reply to PTV’s first-innings total of 220.

In Islamabad, SBP recovered from their overnight score of 138-4 to post 344 all out, reducing MIT’s first-innings lead to 32 runs.

Rameez Aziz top-scored with 84 off 137 balls, hitting 11 fours and a six, while Ali Shan remained unbeaten on 59. Khalid Usman, who had taken three wickets on the second day, completed a five-wicket haul with figures of 5-70.

In reply to SBP’s total, MIT reached 98-3 in 29 overs at stumps to extend their overall lead to 130 runs. Hasnain Nadeem (33 not out) and Atiq-ur-Rehman (30 not out) were at the crease when play ended.

Meanwhile, the two other matches of the sixth round, which began on Wednesday, saw Hashim Ibrahim and Ali Zaryab score centuries.

At the Rana Naveed Cricket Academy in Sheikhupura, Hashim struck an unbeaten 132 to help Ghani Glass reach 273-4 in 77 overs against Kingsmen Academy on the opening day of their four-day match.

Hashim faced 216 balls and hit 19 fours and a six. He received support from fellow opener Malik Abdul Rafay, who scored 50 off 100 balls, including seven fours and a six, while Mohsin Riaz contributed 46. Mohammad Ilyas was the pick of the bowlers for Kingsmen Academy, taking two wickets for 55 runs.

At the LCCA Ground in Lahore, Ali scored 120 off 203 balls to guide Oil and Gas Development Company to 239-5 in 70.3 overs against Sui Northern Gas Pipelines (SNGPL) at stumps.

Ali struck 12 fours, while Mohammad Sarwar Afridi remained unbeaten on 48 after coming in at number six. Abdul Subhan and Shahnawaz Dahani claimed two wickets apiece for SNGPL.

Published in Dawn, October 15th, 2026