KP clinch PCB-Pepsi U16 cricket trophy

LAHORE: Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa (KP) Monday won the PCB-Pepsi Under-16 three-day tournament final beating Northern by an innings and 55 runs inside two days at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad, says a press release.

Resuming their first innings at overnight score of 191-3, KP declared their innings at 292-8, a 179-run lead against Northern. Abbas Ali scored 101 off 158 balls. Mohammad Hasnain and Basit Ali took three wickets each for Northern.

Northern, who scored 113 runs in the first innings, had another poor outing with the bat second time around as they were bowled out for 124 in their second innings in 35 overs. Amir Hassan top-scored with 52 runs. Mohammad Umar took 5-21 while Muhammad Irfan returned with a figure of 4-68 to hasten Northern’s downfall.

KP received a cash award of Rs300,000 for winning the tournament while Northern were given Rs200,000 for being runners-up.

Scores in brief: At Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad: Nor­thern U16s 113 all out in 51.5 (Mohammad Arshad 37; Mohammad Irfan 5-32) and 124 all out in 35 overs (Amir Hassan 52, Muhammad Arshad 24; Mohammad Umar 5-21, Mohammad Irfan 4-68). Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U16s 292-8 declared in 73.2 overs (Abbas Ali 101, Haseeb Khan 56; Basit Ali 3-41, Muhammad Hasnain 3-120).

Best Batsman of the tournament: Abbas Ali — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (338 runs in three matches). Best Bowler: Mohammad Irfan — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (21 wickets in three matches). Best Fielders: Awais Qarni — Sindh and Mohammad Farooq — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Best Wicketkeeper: Arafat Afsar — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.