KARACHI: Last season’s finalists PIA and Habib Bank Limited (HBL) both scored much-needed victories when they crushed their respective opponents by innings margins on the third day of their fourth-round Faysal Bank Quaid-i-Azam Trophy National Cricket Championship Division I matches on Thursday.
PIA, the runners-up, whipped Karachi Blues by an innings and 49 runs here at the National Stadium to record their first win in the ongoing competition. Enforcing the follow on after bowling Karachi Blues for 147, PIA then restricted the regional side to254 in the second innings despite a fighting 84 from wicket-keeper/batsman Javed Mansoor.
Off-spinner Tahir Khan took 4-84 while medium-pacer Ali Imran Pasha claimed 3-82 to finish with seven wickets in the match.
Pakistan discard Danish Kaneria closed in on the magical 1,000-wicket landmark in first-class cricket by snaring seven for 102 as defending champions Habib Bank bowled Islamabad out for 266 in the second innings to triumph by an innings and 27 runs at the Diamond Club Ground.
Barring opener Umair Khan (96) and all-rounder Imad Wasim (47), no other batsman managed to tame leg-spinner Kaneria who has now captured 977 wickets in 196 matches.
State Bank also clinched a three-day win as they defeated Abbottabad by eight wickets at the Abbottabad Cricket Stadium. The regional team folded up for 106 in the second innings with paceman Saad Altaf taking 6-36. the bankers, needing just 46, lost two wickets in reaching the small target.
Earlier, opener Waqar Orakzai made 150 (342 balls, 24 fours) as State Bank posted 346 in the first innings.
Faisalabad scored 284-6 in reply to National Bank’s first-innings total of 539-4 at the Iqbal Stadium.
Veteran right-hander Ayub Dogar struck 200 (242 balls, 31 boundaries) to propel Sialkot to a second-innings total of 396 against Wapda at the Jinnah Stadium.
Wapda, who had earned a lead of 157 on the first innings, reached 38-2 at stumps while chasing 240.
The Rawalpindi-ZTBL fixture at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium was also evenly poised. The bankers, who are in pursuit of a 255-run target, closed the third day at 37-2.
Close of play scores and results on Thursday (day three of four):
At National Stadium, Karachi: PIA beat Karachi Blues by an innings and 49 runs.
PIA 450 in 111 overs (Shaharyar Ghani 161, Sarfraz Ahmed 131, Agha Sabir 48, Kamran Sajid 41; Haris Ayaz 3-71, Tariq Haroon 3-123); KARACHI BLUES 147 in 61.4 overs (Asif Zakir 65 not out; Ali Imran Pasha 4-55, Najaf Shah 3-31) and 254 in 63.4 overs (Javed Mansoor 84, Khalid Latif 43; Tahir Khan 4-84, Ali Imran Pasha 3-82).
At Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad: NATIONAL BANK 539-4 declared in 137.1 overs (Fawad Alam 157 not out, Aqeel Anjum 146, Qaiser Abbas 101 not out, Khurram Manzoor 69); FAISALABAD 284-6 in 111 overs (Asif Zeeshan 58, Farrukh Shahzad 51; Uzair-ul-Haq 3-54).
At Jinnah Stadium, Sialkot: SIALKOT 139 in 48.2 overs (Sarfraz Ahmed 5-36, M. Imran Khan 3-43) and 396 in 96.1 overs (M. Ayub Dogar 200, Mansoor Amjad 97; Sarfraz Ahmed 5-74); WAPDA 296 in 73.5 overs (Ali Azmat 101, Zulfiqar Babar 81; Prince Abbas 3-72) and 38-2 in 13.5 overs.
At Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium: RAWALPINDI 304 in 81.3 overs (Usman Saeed 94, Naved Malik 72, Shoaib Nasir 54; Rao Iftikhar 5-49, Mohammad Khalil 3-94) and 162 in 50.5 overs (Rehan Riaz 3-17, Mohammad Khalil 3-39); ZTBL 212 in 83.2 overs (Haris Sohail 67, Zohaib Khan 58; Sadaf Hussain 6-55) and 37-2 in 14 overs.
At Diamond Club Ground, Islamabad: Habib Bank beat Islamabad by an innings and 27 runs.
HABIB BANK 401 in 97.4 overs (Khaqan Arsal 122, Ahmed Shahzad 80, Hasan Raza 63, Fahad Masood 45; Zohaib Ahmed 7-84); ISLAMABAD 108 in 32.1 overs (Fahad Masood 5-31, Danish Kaneria 2-9) and 266 in 76.1 overs (Umair Khan 96, Imad Wasim 47; Danish Kaneria 7-102).
At Abbottabad Cricket Stadium: State Bank beat Abbottabad by eight wickets.
ABBOTTABAD 285 in 84.3 overs (Ikramullah Khan 70 not out, Hammad Ali Shah 45; Rizwan Haider 3-31) and 106 in 32.1 overs (Saad Altaf 6-36); STATE BANK 346 in 119 overs (Waqar Orakzai 150, S. Mohtashim Ali 53, Kashif Siddique 40; Mohammad Naeem 5-93) and 48-2 in 10.4 overs.