KARACHI: Northern, Central Punjab and Southern Punjab recorded victories on the opening day of the Pakistan Cup 2022-2023 which started here at various venues on Saturday.
At the UBL Sports Complex, Southern Punjab downed Sindh by two wickets.
Sindh were folded for 276 after opting to bat first. Saim Ayub was the star performer for Sindh who blasted a superb 81-ball 100, which featured 11 fours and four sixes. He shared 112 runs for the opening stand with Sharjeel Khan, who scored a 36-ball 32, which carried five fours.
Saifullah Bangash also left an impression with the bat, scoring a 56-ball 54 not out. He struck four fours and one six in his fine knock.
Danish Aziz chipped in with 43-ball 29, which was laced with two fours.
Leggie Usman Qadir was the pick of the bowlers with 5-61, while fast bowler Mohammad Ilyas got 4-43 in nine overs.
Southern Punjab chased the target with seven balls to spare after losing eight wickets.
Usman Salahuddin, who opened the innings, smashed 89 off 126 balls, hitting seven fours. At one stage, Southern Punjab were tottering at 16-4. However, Usman Salahuddin added 143 for the fifth wicket with Arafat Minhas (81) to revive the innings. Arafat struck nine fours and one six in his 78-ball knock.
Skipper Hasan Ali smashed a brisk 33-ball 55 with five fours and three sixes to enable his side to achieve the victory.
Usman Qadir scored valuable 11-ball 18 with three fours. Sohail Khan got 3-33, while Mir Hamza and Asif Mahmood picked two wickets each.
Northern defeated holders Balochistan by 54 runs on D/L in a high-scoring game here at the NBP Sports Complex.
Northern posted 356-2 in the allotted 50 overs with skipper Umar Amin (114*) and Mubasir Khan (118*) scoring fine unbeaten hundreds. The duo put on 184 for the third wicket unbroken stand which enabled their side to post an imposing total on a placid track.
Umar hit eight fours and three sixes in his 100-ball knock while Mubasir smashed 12 fours and five sixes in his fiery 65-ball innings. Earlier, Umar Amin also added 117 runs for the second wicket stand with Haider Ali, who chipped in with 90 off 110 balls, smashing eight fours.
Left-arm pacer Akif Javed and Amad Butt got one wicket each.
In reply, Balochistan had scored 244-7 in 40 overs when the game was stopped due to bad light.
International all-rounder Hussain Talat scored 101 not out, smacking six sixes and three fours in his 74-ball knock.
He added 73 for the third wicket association with Abdul Wahid Bangalzai, who chipped in with 51 off 44 balls, which featured four fours and three sixes. Amad Butt made a 26-ball 31, striking three sixes. Musa Khan (3-40) and spinner Umer Khan (2-57) bowled well.
At the SBP Sports Complex, Central Punjab whipped Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by eight wickets.
KP were skittled out for only 143 in 39 overs with Waqar Ahmed scoring 61, which featured seven fours. Skipper Khalid Usman made 21 and Mohammad Amir Khan scored 19.
Spinner Zafar Gohar got 3-30, while Waqas Maqsood, Ali Shafique and Saif Badar claimed two wickets each.
Central Punjab achieved the target in 27 overs after losing just two wickets. Mohammad Faizan (53) and Tayyab Tahir (34) provided a solid 84-run opening stand. Faizan struck six fours and two sixes in his 49-ball knock.
Ahmed Shehzad (29*) and Qasir Akram (24*) then took their side home safely.
Spinner Sajid Khan got 2-38 in eight overs.