LAHORE: Balochistan secured a thrilling draw against Northern at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad, thanks to Gohar Faiz and Taj Wali.
Balochistan had to knock off 285 runs with nine wickets in hand to secure their first Quaid-e-Azam Trophy win when the final day’s play of the fifth round began on Saturday, but Mehran Mumtaz’s four for 89 – which included wickets of Azeem Ghumman (21), Abdul Wahid Bangalzai (54), Ayaz Tasawar (90) and Jalat Khan (38) – pushed the Imran Butt-captained side on the back foot. They finished the day on 278 for nine.
Abdul Wahid continued his run of form with a remarkable 97-ball 54. The youngster, who is playing his first Quaid-e-Azam Trophy season, smashed seven fours. Ayaz provided stiff resistence with a 194-ball 90 (nine fours and a six) in the middle order before he fell to Mehran.
Kashif Ali and Raza Hasan got two wickets each.
Both sides, for securing draw, got five points each.
The other four sides also secured five points each as the other two matches also ended in draw.
At the Gaddafi Stadium, Tayyab Tahir and Azam Khan scored half-centuries for Southern Punjab and Sindh’s Mohammad Asghar picked up four for 96.
Tayyab top-scored with 179-ball 75, while wicketkeeper Azam smashed 67 off 71 (four fours and five sixes).
At the Multan Cricket Stadium, Mohammad Ali’s three wickets instilled hope in Central Punjab’s camp, but Adil Amin’s 105-ball 10 not out and Rehan Afridi’s 65-ball 32 not out ensured the match ended in a draw.
Ali followed up his brilliant six for 52 in the first innings with three for 42 as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were 109 for five before both captains shook hands.
Central Punjab set 349-run target by declaring their second innings on 290 for eight. Zafar Gohar remained unbeaten on 49, while captain Ali Zaryab converted his overnight 102 int0 131 before he was dismissed by Khalid Usman.
The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2021-22 now moves to Karachi, where the last five rounds and the final will be played.
Scores in brief:
Balochistan and Northern play a draw at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad
Northern 244 all out, 84.4 overs (Abdul Faseeh 47, Rohail Nazir 41, Umar Amin 37, Muhammad Huraira 33, Mehran Mumtaz 23, Aamir Jamal 22; Kashif Bhatti 5-92, Raza-ul-Hasan 2-37, Jalat Khan 2-68) and 259-6, 76.4 overs (Abdul Faseeh 94, Mohammad Huraira 65, Umar Amin 42; Taj Wali 5-47)
Balochistan 211 all out, 74.1 overs (Bismillah Khan 64, Akbar-ur-Rehman 50, Gohar Faiz 22; Raza Hasan 4-67, Mehran Mumtaz 3-80, Mubasir Khan 2-21) and 278-9, 85 overs (Ayaz Tasawar 90, Abdul Wahid Bangalzai 54, Jalat Khan 38, Bismillah Khan 34, Azeem Ghumman 21; Mehran Mumtaz 4-89, Kashif Ali 2-24, Raza Hasan 2-87)
Match points – Northern 11, Balochistan 11
Sindh and Southern Punjab play a draw at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Southern Punjab 310 all out, 101.3 overs (Umar Siddiq 84, Imran Rafiq 68, Umar Siddiq 61 not out, Zain Abbas 45, Yousuf Babar 36, .
Sindh 350-9, 85 overs (Saad Khan 90, Ahsan Ali 70, Asad Shafiq 48, Tabish Khan 29 not out, Sohail Khan 22, Mohammad Hasan 21; Ali Usman 4-75, Aamer Yamin 2-70).