Qasmi, Sindh Police triumphant in KG Cricket

KARACHI: Qasmi Gymkhana and Sindh Police registered victories over their respective opponents in the 33rd Karachi Gymkhana Ramazan Festival Twenty20 Cricket Tournament 2018 for the Omar Associates Trophy here at the KG Cricket Ground on Sunday.

Qasmi Gymkhana edged out hosts Karachi Gymkhana by four runs in an exciting Group C fixture while Sindh Police overwhelmed Momin Seed Cricket Club by six wickets in their Group A encounter. Batting first, after winning the toss, Qasmi Gymkhana scored 156 for the loss of four wickets in the allotted overs. Opener Bilal Ahmed, adjudged Man of the Match, did bulk of the scoring as he finished with an unbeaten 89 off 60 balls with the help of four sixes and eight fours. Left-arm spinner Rafay Safdar (2-20) and off-spinner Habib-ur-Rahman (2-32) bowled tightly and effectively to prevent the Qasmi Gymkhana total entering mammoth proportions. Karachi Gymkhana ran into trouble while chasing the target of 157 and all seemed lost for them when their seventh wicket went down at 96. But a fierce counter-attack from Furqan Khalil, who clobbered three sixes and a four in his breezy unbeaten 39 off 24 balls, revived their hopes. Farhan Arif also played part by scoring a rapid unbeaten 19 off 13 balls but they narrowly fell short of the target. Leg-spinner Hasan Sardar (3-22) and left-arm spinner Wasim Ali (2-20) were the pick of the Qasmi Gymkhana bowlers.

Earlier in the day, the Sind Police spin trio of Ali Asghar (3-21), Farooq Hasan (2-16) and Tariq Khan (2-26) sent Momin Seed CC tumbling to 106 all out in 17.4 overs after their openers Azhar Abbas (29 off 22 balls) and Khan Muhammad (20 off 23 balls) had added 50 for the first wicket. Sindh Police reached the modest target of 107 with nearly three overs to spare, losing only four wickets in process. Shiraz Ali was the topscorer with an unbeaten 34 off 41 balls but Man of Match award was clinched by Ali Asghar for his three-wicket haul.