BOWLERS AND BATTERS SHARE HONORS IN WPCA AFTERNOON
BY: DR. SAYED ZIAUDDIN
JEDDAH: In the WPCA Afternoon matches, Hyderabad Sharks thrashed Zultec by 7 wkts, Abudawood Trading downed Nesma Airlines by 5 wkts, Tuskers declared winner against Al Samer Group, Al Kabbani Cricket Group won against Al Hamrani Fuchs, Stallions had no difficulty in defeating FRC Planet Technology as KKR had the last laugh against Karachi Warriors.
Match # 35: Al Hamrani Fuchs opting to bat first against Al Kabbani Cricket Group was restricted to 105 for 9 in allotted 18 overs on ground # 7. Nadeem scored 32 in 34 balls with 3 fours, Haroon 14 while Irfan Anjum and Mukhtar 11 each. Two scalp each was grabbed by Abdullah, Ishtiyaq and Luqman Ulfat from Kabbani. Al Kabbani Cricket group then reached the victory target of 110 for 5 in 86 balls to win comfortably. Abdullah hit 31 in 20 balls with 2 sixes and 2 fours, Kazim Shah 26 not out in 16 balls with 5 hits to the fence and Saeed 19. Khalid Waseem grabbed 3 for 28
Match # 36: Stallions Air homes decided to bat first against FRC Planet Technology on ground # 6 to get to big 176 for 9 in allotted 18 overs. Hassan Ali at # 6 hammered 66 in 33 balls with 6 hits to the ropes as he added 55 in 31 for the 5th wkt with Jahanzeb who made 23 in 21 balls to get some respectable tally after they were reduced to 50 for 4 in the 6th over with just Shafeeq scoring 32 in 13 balls with 4 fours and a six. Sohail Bajwa later hit an unbeaten 23 in 13 balls with 3 fours. Prince scalped 3 for 54 and Nasir 2. FRC Planet Technology in response was stranded at 104 for 7 in stipulated 18 overs to lose by 71 runs. Rafeeq hit 35 in 26 balls with 6 hits to the ropes and Afsal was unbeaten 26 in 23 balls with a six. Nidin made 15. Hassan Ali and Safiuddin took 2 wkts each.
Match # 37: Karachi Warriors chose to bat first on calling the coin correctly was bowled out for 110 against KKR on ground # 2. Imran Sarwar hit the top score of the score card with 33 in 28 balls with a six and a four, Kareem 15 and Nasir 13 not out while Riyasat contributed 11. Vineed grabbed 3 for 17 and Jaleel 3 for 29. KKR in reply had no difficulty in getting to the target of 114 for 4 in 85 balls to win by 6 wkts with 23 balls to remain. Kabeer batted well for his 41 in 28 balls with 4 fours while Mushtaq contributed 21 in 20 balls to add together 45 for the 3rd wkt. Haris made 14. Shoaib was the most successful bowler with 3 for 28. KKR looked comparatively most disciplined side in the match and their catching was quite phenomenal with no dropping in the middle. Karachi Warriors will have to improve on their infield activities which was below par. Both sides looked good but then the side with better hold on the game won.
Match # 38: Zultec was asked to bat by the Toss winner Hyderabad Sharks was bowled out for 146 in the allotted 18 overs on Ground # 9. Zultec started on a bad note with both the openers back in the pavilion to make them 3 for 2. Amir Sajjad then tried to rectify the situation hitting 36 in 16 balls with 7 fours while Usman Gulab compiled 41 in 28 balls with 6 fours to get to 88 for 6 in the 10th over. Shahbaz Rasheed then hit 33 in 28 balls with 2 sixes added tally boosting 52 in 37 balls for the 7th wkt with Zakaullah who made 19 with a six to get to 140 for 7. Atif Gill bowling 17th overs grabbed 3 wkts on consecutive balls to register the Hat trick to reduce Zultec to 140 for 9 from 140 for 6 at one stage. Atif Gill took 3 for 19 and Omar Farooq 2 wkts.
Hyderabad Sharks chasing reached the victory target of 150 for 3 in 104 balls to win by 7 wkts with 4 balls remaining. Atif Gill remained unbeaten on 48 off 39 balls with 3 fours and a six as he added a match-winning 86 in 50 balls for the unbroken 4th wkt with Omer Farooq who remained unbeaten on 51 off 27 balls with 3 sixes and 3 fours after Hyderabad Sharks was reduced to 64 for 3 at the beginning of the innings with Mohammed Shahzad making 26 in 17 balls with 4 fours, Mohammed Ilyas (8) and Sada Hussain (9). Zeeshan took 2 wkts. The Premier prime Group is now entered a crucial stage with Hyderabad Sharks dominating the table along with Abudawood Trading and the other two being Lothers and Zultec. The points table looks very clear and the 4 top teams seem to be through. The only question remains is the Ranks in the table. At the moment Hyderabad Sharks are leading the table with all wins to their name.
Match # 39: The match between Tusker and Al Samer Group could not take place due to the no show by Al Samer Group. Tusker was awarded the match on Walkover basis on Ground # 8. Al Samer Group with two consecutive Walkovers are banned in WPCA and no further participation of the team AL SAMER GROUP will be allowed in WPCA. Al Samer Group as a team has failed in maintaining the disciplined approach and will not be allowed to participate further in WPCA.
Match # 40: Nesma Airlines with 10 Players won the toss to bat first to get to 122 for 9 in allotted 18 overs against Abudawood Trading on Ground # 5. Saeed ul Islam hammered 50 in 22 balls studded with 3 sixes and 4 fours as he added 65 in 33 balls for the opening stand with Hafiz Jaffer (6) to get to 66 runs in the power play. Later Imran Yusuf stroked 35 in 24 balls with 5 fours and a six. Faheem Afrad scalped 3 for 16 and two wkts each to Waqas and Adnan. Mohsin had 4 victims behind the sticks.
Abudawood Trading in chase achieved the winning target of 123 for 5 in 80 balls to win by 5 wkts with 28 balls to spare. Aijaz Butt hammered match winning 54 in 36 balls with 4 sixes and 2 fours as he added 73 in 29 balls for the first wkt with Mohsin who made 38 in 15 balls with a six and 6 fours. Malik Naeem added 12 and Waqas Bhatti 11. Rana Abrar grabbed 2 wkts.
