KARACHI: Tail-ender Mohammad Waseem offered a superb resistance with the bat in the end to save Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from a certain defeat as their Quaid-e-Azam Trophy (first-class) fifth round outing against Northern ended in a draw here at the National Stadium after a pulsating finish on Sunday.
Debutant Waseem faced 59 balls for his patient 18 not out to save KP as they reached 319-9 in their second innings in 97 overs, while chasing a target of 390. Waseem, who hit three fours during his fighting 74-minute sojourn at the crease, was ably backed by Arshad Iqbal (1*) who faced 17 balls. The last pair brilliantly faced last six overs from spinners Nauman Ali and Mohammad Nawaz. Earlier, KP resumed their second innings with an overnight score of 55.
Both openers Musaddiq Ahmad (85) and Israrullah (64) provided a good platform by adding 155 runs for the first wicket. Musaddiq, who was batting on 28 on Saturday, struck eight fours and three sixes from 114 balls. Israrullah, who was batting on 22 on Saturday, smacked four fours in his 101-ball knock.
Kamran Ghulam chipped in with 45 off 89 balls, hammering five fours and one six. Zohaib Khan struck 42 off 134 balls with six fours.
KP faced themselves in deep trouble when they lost their last four wickets inside 16 runs. But the last pair did well to avert the danger.
Left-arm spinner Nauman Ali got 4-113 in 48 overs, finishing with match figures of 6-177. Pacer Munir Riaz got 2-70, for match-haul of 7-183 on his debut. Waqas Ahmad claimed 2-36, for 3-98 match figures.
Northern scored 460-9 declared and 247-4 declared. KP staged 318 all out in their first innings.
Meanwhile, the other fixture between Southern Punjab and Central Punjab also ended in a draw here at the UBL Sports Complex.
Chasing 259, Central Punjab reached 164-9 in 39 overs by the end of the game. Ali Shan hit 43 off 30 ball, smacking six fours and one six. Saad Nasim made 39 off 37 deliveries, hammering two sixes and one four. Opener Ali Zaryab chipped in with 30-ball 34, smacking three fours. Leggie Zahid Mahmood got 5-23, for 7-160 match-haul.
Pacer Mohammad Imran claimed 2-47 in six overs. Earlier, in response to Southern Punjab’s first innings total of 527-7 declared, Central Punjab resumed their innings at 401-9 and were folded for 459 in 140.4 overs, conceding a 68-run lead.
Skipper Hasan Ali (59*) and Waqas Maqsood (30) shared 94 for the tenth wicket stand.
Hasan hit one six and ten fours from 53 balls while Waqas smacked two sixes and three fours from 43 deliveries.
Zahid Mahmood got 2-137 in 36.4 overs.
Southern Punjab then declared their second innings at 190-5 in 40 overs to give a tough target for Central Punjab. Umar Siddiq chipped in with 63 off 93 balls, hitting eight fours while Saif Badar smacked eight fours and one six in his 77-ball 63.
Test off-spinner Bilal Asif, who remained wicketless in the first innings, got 2-65 in 15 overs.
The other dull fixture between Sindh and Balochistan also ended in a draw here at the SBP Ground.
Chasing 283 runs target in 42 overs Sindh reached 96-3 in 27 overs when the game was ended. Saud Shakeel hit 48 off 73 balls, striking four fours and two sixes. Asad Shafiq chipped in with 22 not out off 31 balls, striking one six and one four.
Taj Wali, Kashif Bhatti and Jalat Khan got one wicket each. Jalat finished the game with 6-124.
Earlier, after gaining a 51-run lead Balochistan resumed their second innings at 42 without loss and went on to declare it at 231-4 in 60 overs.
Akbar-ur-Rehman (76), Ali Waqas (72*) and Azeem Ghumman (44) batted well.
Waqas hit eight fours from 118 balls while Akbar struck eight fours and one six from 115 balls. Ghumman hit seven fours from 60 deliveries. Abrar Ahmad, Asad Shafiq, Mir Hamza and Tabish Khan got one wicket each. Leggie Abrar finished the match with 4-168. Balochistan scored 458-9 declared while Sindh in response posted 407 all out.
