KRL thump HEC in President’s Cup match

ISLAMABAD: KRL thumped HEC by eight wickets in the President’s Cup match here at the Diamond Ground Monday.

KRL chased down the 223-run target in just 36.3 overs with the help of Naseerullah Khan’s 108. Earlier, KRL’s Mohammad Imran Jnr dented HEC batting with figures of 6-45 as they were bundled out for 222 in 48.3 overs. Uzair Mumtaz (50) and Waseem Akram Jnr (47) pushed their team towards a fighting total.

In return, Naseerullah, who hit 14 fours and one six in his 111-ball outing, stitched a 124-run opening partnership with Maaz Sadaqat (64) as KRL cruised to the target with 81 balls to spare.

Meanwhile, Wapda beat SBP by 11 runs on DLS method in the second match of Group A. After Wapda were invited to bat first, Iftikhar Ahmed struck his 11th List-A century scoring a career-best 154 (not out) off 81 balls, hitting 17 fours and seven sixes to propel Wapda to 379-4 in 50 overs.

Iftikhar shared an unbroken 125-run fifth-wicket stand with Ayaz Tasawar (51 not out). Hashim Ibraheem (75) and Mohammad Arif (61) also chipped in with vital contributions. In reply, SBP captain Umar Amin, batting at No. 3, struck an unbeaten 182 off 141 balls. SBP were 344-8, requiring 36 runs off the last three overs before play was stopped due to bad light leaving them 11 runs behind the par score. Khushdil Shah picked up three wickets while Iftikhar dismissed two batters.

Wapda lead Group A with three wins out of three. The second-round fixture between SBP and KRL, which was postponed on October 5, will now take place on October 9 at the Abbottabad Stadium.

Scores in brief: Group A: KRL beat HEC by eight wickets at Diamond Club Ground, Islamabad: HEC 222 all out, 48.3 overs (Uzair Mumtaz 50, Waseem Akram Jnr 47, Mohammad Junaid 32; Mohammad Imran Jnr 6-45, Shahid Aziz 2-45). KRL 223-2, 36.3 overs (Naseerullah Khan 108, Maaz Sadaqat 64).

Wapda beat SBP by 11 runs (DLS method) at Abbottabad Stadium: WAPDA 379-4, 50 overs (Iftikhar Ahmed 154 not out, Hashim Ibraheem 75, Mohammad Arif 61, Ayaz Tasawar 51 not out; Saqib Khan 2-66, Mohammad Abbas 2-79). SBP 344-8, 47 overs (Umar Amin 182 not out, Muhammad Irfan Khan 56, Imran Butt 39; Khushdil Shah 3-68, Iftikhar Ahmed 2-46).

PTV beat Ghani Glass by nine wickets at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad: Ghani Glass 166 all out, 38.2 overs (Hussain Talat 72, Tayyab Tahir 67; Faisal Akram 5-24, Jahandad Khan 2-27, Mohammad Hasnain 2-35). PTV 169-1, 25.5 overs (Imam-ul-Haq 69 not out, Sahibzada Farhan 69 not out).

Eshaal Associates beat OGDCL by five wickets at Saeed Sports City Lahore: OGDCL 295-8, 50 overs (Abbas Ali 86, Mohammad Hammad Khan 67, Raja Hamza Waheed 31; Mohammad Sudais 2-26, Nisar Ahmad 2-45). Eshaal Associates 297-5, 47 overs (Abdul Wahid Bangalzai 103, Haider Ali 81 not out, Afaq Ahmed 44 not out).