KARACHI, Nov 8: A typical gutsy century by former Test opener Shoaib Mohammad helped PIA reach a commanding 285 for one on the opening day of the Patron’s Trophy Grade-I fixture at UBL Sports Complex here Thursday.
The 40-year-old stalwart batted all day to score 147 while sharing an unfinished second wicket stand of 191 in 231 minutes with young Test right-hander Faisal Iqbal, who is batting on 80.
Shoaib’s 38th century in 211 first-class matches includes eight fours. The diminutive right-hander has so far faced 290 deliveries during his six-hour knock.
Faisal’s 193-ball innings contains five boundaries.
The only casualty in the innings was Ghulam Ali, who literally squandered a golden opportunity to make a big contribution. After making 41 off 114 balls with the help of five hits to the fence, Ghulam Ali offered an easy catch to Fahim Ahmed at mid-wicket off leg-spinner Mansoor Ahmed.
The opening stand between Ghulam Ali and Shoaib realized 94 in 130 minutes after PIA stand-in skipper Asif Mujtaba had no hesitation in batting first at the toss.
PIA, who need to win this game with maximum points to ensure they finish runners-up to National Bank, are bolstered by the presence of Test stars Yousuf Youhana and Saqlain Mushtaq.
The off-spinning wizard is playing his first game in almost two months, having returned from London a couple of days ago.
And given the sluggish nature of the pitch here, Saqlain is almost certain to prove a handful for the PWD batsmen, who fell easy prey to Saqlain’s great rival Arshad Khan (12 for 185) in the previous match against Allied Bank.
PIA (1st Innings):
Ghulam Ali c Fahim b Mansoor 41
Shoaib Mohammad not out 147
Faisal Iqbal not out 80
EXTRAS (B-8, LB-7, W-1, NB-1) 17
TOTAL (for one wkt, 98 overs) 285
FALL OF WKT: 1-94.
TO BAT: Asif Mujtaba, Yousuf Youhana, Yasir Hameed, Zahid Ahmed, Saqlain Mushtaq, Ahmed Zeeshan Malik, Aizaz Cheema, Mohammad Zahid.
BOWLING (to-date): Tanvir Ahmed 16-1-41-0 (1nb, 1w); Bilal Asad 11-1-21-0; Bazid Khan 1-0-6-0; Fahim Ahmed Sr 25-3-64-0; Riaz Shaikh 19-0-60-0; Mansoor Ahmed 20-1-62-1; Iqbal Imam 2-0-8-0; Imran Khan 4-0-8-0.
PWD: Bilal Asad, Imran Khan, Afsar Nawaz, Bazid Khan, Iqbal Imam (captain), Zahid Ghauri, Riaz Shaikh, Fahim Ahmed Sr, Rao Wasim, Tanvir Ahmed, Mansoor Ahmed.
UMPIRES: Riazuddin and Sadiq Mohammad.
MATCH REFEREE: Mahmood Rasheed.