KARACHI: A good all-round performance from Shah­zad Ali guided Qasmi CC to an inconsequential 420ru victory against Kar­achi Gymkhana Acad­emy in the 29th Karachi Gymkhana Omar Associates Ramazan Cricket Festival on Sunday.

Batting first after stand-in skipper Bilal Asif won the toss in the Group ‘A’ tie at the KG Ground, Qasmi CC made 178-6 in their 20 overs. Shahzad hammered six bou­ndaries and one six in making 39 off 21 balls. Karachi Gymkhana Acad­emy, in reply, got only 136-8 despite fine batting by Rehan Malik (43 off 38 balls, four fours and one six) and Aaqib Rizvi (35 off 33, four boundaries).

Shahzad grabbed three wickets for eight runs with his leg-spinners to claim the man-of-the-match award.

Meanwhile, the day’s other fixture between Dubai Islamic Bank and Heroes CC in Group ‘D’ was put off for unspecified reasons.

Summarised scores:

QASMI CC 178-7 in 20 overs (Shahzad Ali 39, Bilal Asif 30, Hasan Mustafa 29, Mohammad Waqas 23; Ashar Qureshi 2-29); KARACHI GYMKHANA ACADEMY 136-8 in 20 overs (Rehan Malik 43, Aaqib Rizvi 35, Mohammad Hussain 23; Shahzad Ali 3-8, Aamir Butt 10).

Monday’s fixture: Omar CC vs Vital Five CC (first quarter-final).

Published in Dawn, July 21st, 2014