BY: DR. SAYED ZIAUDDIN
JEDDAH: In week two 7 matches were played in which Nadeem XI, AWCC, Cascade Group, AEC, Apex Freight and Bupa CC won their respective matches. Black Hawks declared the winner against Thales Group on Technical Grounds. Apart from a couple of fifties, Mohammed Rizwan of AWCC hammered a fine ton whereas Adil Deshmukh of Cascade Group and Rana Adnan of Bupa grabbed 4 wkts each.
Morning Session:
Match # 1M: ARBROSS decided to bat first after winning the toss to get pile up 177 in the allotted 20 overs. Sufiyan hammered 84 in 45 balls with 3 sixes and 8 fours as he first added 46 for the 3rd wkt with Adeel (15) and then 85 in 54 balls for the 4th wkt with Abdullah who made 36 in 22 balls. Once this pair was sent back they lost wkts in a heap to be reduced to 177 all out from 159 for 3. Tahir grabbed 4 wkts for 16 and Ataullah 3 for 18.
AWCC in reply was stranded at 153 to lose by 24 runs. Kabir hit 56 in 33 balls with 6 hits to the ropes, Qasim 22, Attaullah 16 and Asif 12. Minhaj took 2 scalps.
Match # 3M: Sialkot Shaheen elected to bat first after winning the toss amassed 203 for 6 in allotted 20 overs on Ground # 2 against Warraich Gujrat XI. Yasir smashed 59 in 32 balls with 9 fours as he first added 48 for the first wkt with Shahzad (15), then 64 in 38 balls for the 2nd wkt with Rao Aslam who made 31 in 22 balls with 3 boundaries. Later Shafiq made 27 in 16 balls and Nazim 39 in 12 balls with 2 sixes and 3 fours. Rafiq took 2 wkts.
Warraich Gujrat XI in response could make 162 for 9 in the allotted 20 overs to lose by 41 runs. Nasir Ali struggled hard for his 75 off 39 balls with 5 sixes and 4 fours as none other could support him except Mohsin (12) and Muzammil (16). Waseem grabbed 4 wkts for 21 and Azhar 3 for 16.
Match # 8M: Nadeem XI was asked to bat first by the opponents Arbross plundered 173 for 5 in the allotted 18 overs on ground # 8. Nadeem XI lost early wkts but then Khalid with his 35 in 28 balls with 4 fours stabilized the innings to add 41 for the 3rd wkt to get to 74 for 3 in the 10th over. Later Saddam Ahmed hit 7 fours to compile an unbeaten 53 in 29 balls to stitch 80 runs in 38 balls for the 5th wkt with Intekhab who made 33 in 14 balls. AbdulRehman took 2 wkts.
Arbross now changed to SUNBONN SULTANS CC could not change their fortune against a formidable target of 174 to be bowled out for 118 to lose the encounter by 55 runs. Sufiyan the lone man with 45 in 28 balls with 6 fours and a six could not carry on as any other could support him in the middle. Roman made 17, Minhaj 14 and Adeel 10. Sboor scalped 4 wkts for 26, Nabeel 3 for 27 and Altaf 2.
Match # 9M: AWCC opted to bat first after winning the toss and racked up 212 for 5 in the allotted 18 overs on Ground # 5 against Warraich Gujrat XI. Mohammed Rizwan blasted a career-best 101 in 48 balls studded with 16 fours and 2 sixes as he first stitched 126 in 57 balls for the opening stand with Asif who made 28 in 18 balls with 2 fours and 2 sixes. Later Qasim and Naveed made 18 each and Kabir 13. Rafiq scalped 3 for 27.
Warraich Gujarat XI responded with 137 for 8 in stipulated 18 overs to lose the encounter by 75 runs. Nasir stroked 42 in 24 balls as he added 59 in 36 balls for the first wkt with Rashid (22). Moazzam (12) and Ilyas 14 not out were the only ten-digit achievers after that restricted them to 137. Khurram grabbed 3 for 13 and Naveed 2.
Match # 10M: Jeddah Falcons on Ground # 9 against Cascade Group chose to use the track first and was bowled out for 109 in the allotted 18 overs. Sher Bahadur hit 34 in 35 balls with 3 fours as he added 44 runs for the 3rd wkt with Moiz Mullah (22) to achieve some respectability to the tally as apart from these two Fouzan Kazi remained unbeaten on 18 and Qatadah Kazi 12. Aadil Deshmukh shook Jeddah Falcons with 4 wkts for 13 runs in his 3 overs as Mohammed Zubair took 2.
Cascade Group in chase reached the winning target of 110 for 1 in 55 balls to win by 9 wkts with 53 balls remaining. Ahmed Baldaraf hammered unbeaten 51 in 23 balls with 2 sixes and 6 fours as he first added 48 runs for the first wkt with Irfan Ayazuddin who made 27 in 14 balls with 6 hits to the fence and then 62 in 30 balls for the unbroken 2nd wkt with Adil Deshmukh who remained unbeaten on 25 off 15 balls with 4 fours.
Match # 11M: AEC opting to use the track first against Super CC plundered 190 for 5 in allotted 18 overs on ground # 7. Ghaffar remained unbeaten on 48 off 36 balls with 3 fours, Hassan unbeaten at 41 in 16 balls with 6 boundaries, Muzammil 33 in 14 balls with 3 sixes and 2 fours, Awais 25 in 14 balls with 3 fours and Tariq 18. Irfan had 2 wkts against his name.
Super CC in response was restricted to 123 for 9 in stipulated 18 overs to lose the match by 67 runs. After the top order failed miserably to be reduced to 40 for 5 and then the wkts tumbling continued when Usman Akbar hit 33 in 33 balls with 4 fours and Sibghatullah 30 in 22 balls with 4 fours to take their teams to some respectability of 123 at the end. Kamran and Hasan had 3 wkts each for 33 and 20 runs respectively as Sajid had 2.
Match # 12M: Apex freight called the toss of the coin correctly to bat first against Transparent Mask to blast 183 for 6 in the allotted 18 overs on ground # 4. Mohammed Naeem top-scored with 71 off 44 balls with 4 sixes and 3 fours as he first added 61 in 30 balls for the opening stand with Mohammed Suleman (20) and then 86 in 53 balls for the 2nd wkt with one down Qaiser noor who made 52 in 32 balls with 3 sixes and 2 fours to get to 150 in the 14th over. Ahmed Mugheri remained unbeaten on 21. Hasan and Sufiyan had 2 scalps each.
Transparent Mask in response crashed for just 125 to lose the match by 58 runs. Mohammed Saeed scored 25, Mohammed Ali 24, Mudasser 19 and Gulam Ghouse 18. Zahid scalped 3 for 24, Abdulrehman 3 for 29 and Sardar 3 for 34.
Match # 13M: In the last match of the day Bupa CC had the last laugh against young Strikers by one wkt. Young Strikers won the toss to bat first and started well with Zubair Naseer in awesome touch blasted 6 sixes and a four to compile 54 in 25 balls as he first added 41 for the first wkt with Sibtain (13) and then 57 in 31 balls for the 2nd wkt with M. Afzaal who made 30 in 19 balls to get past 100 in the 8th over. From here the wkts started tumbling like nine pins as none could score runs to be restricted to 156 with 9 balls still remaining from the quota of overs. Rana Adnan grabbed 4 wkts for 16 runs and Qasim 2.
Bupa CC chasing lost prolific Shahnawaz Khan for 31 off 19 due to an injury to his hand and he was rushed for the emergency treatment. Sheraz who batted well fell and retired hurt for 40 off 21 balls with 6 fours. Haq Nawaz made 31 in 17 balls with 4 fours and a six, Shoaib 23 in 19 balls. Bupa CC could make 159 for 9 in stipulated 18 overs to win as Zubair Sunasra smashed a winning 6 in the last over to get over the target. Ali and Fahad took 2 wkts each.
AFTERNOON SESSION: In the Afternoon Session Nesma Airlines, Abudawood Trading and Hyderabad Sharks won their matches in the Premier Prime while in the Afternoon Blue Fuchs Al Hamrani, Al Kabbani Cricket Group and Stallions Air homes were home with victories.
Match # 6A: FRC Planet Technology elected to use the track first against Al Kabbani Cricket Group on ground # 6 to post 136 for 7 in the allotted 18 overs. FRC lost wkts in a heap with 4 down for 28 in the 5th over was a great set back but then Jaffar coming at #5 hammered unbeaten 78 in 43 balls with the help of 3 sixes and 11 fours to save the day for his team to get to some respectability in the tally of scores. Faisal made 18 and Abdullah 12 as none from the top 4 batters could not touch the double digits. Azad Ali and Anwer had 2 scalps each.
Al Kabbani Cricket Group in chase reached the victory target of 137 for 2 in 93 balls to win by 8 wkts with 15 balls to remain. Their star performer Imran Qaiser was sent at # 4 this time which clicked as he scored unbeaten 64 in 38 balls studded with 8 fours and a six as he stitched together 83 runs in 54 balls for the unbroken 3rd wkt with Mohammed Nasir who remained not out on 38 off 30 balls with 2 fours. Saeed Iqbal made 26 in 17 balls with 4 hits to the ropes.
Match # 7A: KKR deciding to bat first against Stallions Air homes was stranded at 129 for 6 in allotted 18 overs on Ground # 5. The decision of batting first backfired at KKR with the first 4 wkts were lost by the 7th over with 37 on the board. Kabeer then hit 34 in 27 balls with 4 boundaries as he was supported amicably by Amitabh (23) to add 45 runs for the 5th wkt. Later in the day, Shabeer remained unbeaten on 19 and Jamsher 16 not out. Hassan Ali scalped 2 wkts.
Stallions Air homes in chase achieved the winning target of 130 for 2 in 91 balls as former Stallion skipper Aqeel Mali played a match-winning inning of 55 in 40 balls with 7 fours and a six as he added 59 in 46 balls for the 2nd wkt with Hassan Ali who made 29 in 22 balls and then 49 for the unbroken 3rd wkt with Jehanzeb who remained unbeaten on 21. Earlier Shafiq made 19 in 9 balls with 3 fours and a six.
Match # 8A: Fuchs Al Hamrani opted to bat first after winning the toss against Karachi Warriors to get to 154 for 6 in the allotted 18 overs on Ground # 4. Ali batted well for his 46 in 34 balls with 7 fours, Zeeshan 36 in 26 balls with 2 fours and a six, Noman was run out for 20 and Nadeem 16. Raees grabbed 2 wkts.
Karachi Warriors in reply started well with the top batters batting well with Riyasath making 34 in 18 balls with six and 4 fours, Adnan Sialkoti 32 in 35 balls with 3 fours and Imran 26 in 16 balls with six and 2 fours to get to 113 for 3 in the 12th over requiring 42 runs in 36 balls with 7 wkts in hand. Khalid Waseem changed the course of the game with 4 wkts for 21 to reduce the Warriors to 132 for 6 requiring 23 runs in 2 overs. Karachi Warriors then scored 14 runs in the 17th over and lost one more wkt. Now the equation in the penultimate over was Warriors required 15 runs with 3 wkts but Khalid Waseem gave just 8 runs and took 2 wkts to stop the Warriors at 149 for 9 to win by 5 runs. It was a good match but the difference was Khalid Waseem who grabbed 4 wkts from where the Warriors had no chance to come back. Haroon had 2 scalps.
Match # 9A: In the Premier Prime first match between Nesma Airlines and IDB Group, Nesma Airlines using the track first could post 168 for 6 in the allotted 18 overs. Rana Abrar coming as an opener hit 64 in 39 balls as he added 45 for the 2nd wkt with Ahmed Rizvi (12). Later Saidul Islam hit 5 fours and a six to compile an unbeaten 46 in 16 balls as Hafiz Jaffer made 17. Naser grabbed 3 for 36.
IDB Group in response started well with 43 runs added for the first wkt with Waqas (17) and Ramiz (23) but once the openers separated they lost 3 more wkts to be reduced to 48 for 3. Then Mazhar stroked 33 with 2 fours and 2 sixes to add 55 for the 4th wkt with Abid making 21. Later Yasser scored 30 with 3 sixes and a four and Siraj remained unbeaten on 23 with 3 fours to get to 161 for 7 in the stipulated 18 overs falling short by 7 runs to lose. Rana Abrar claimed 3 for 30 and Hafiz Jaffer 2 scalps.
Match # 10 A: Zultec CC was asked to bat by the opposition Abu Dawood Trading lost wkts with half the side back in the pavilion at 64 for 5 in the 11th over. Omair Khan tried his best with 25 in 33 balls but the wkts tumbled from the other side as Khawar Zafar (3), Abdullah Essa (15), Amir Sajjad (9) and Waqar (0) returned early. Later in the day, Abu Huraira hit an unbeaten 41 in 25 balls with 3 fours and a six as he added a total boosting 75 runs in 43 balls for the unbroken 6th wkt with Usman Gulab who was not out on 37 off 24 balls with 4 fours to get to 139 for 5 in 108 balls.
Abu Dawood Trading chasing 140 to win reached the winning target of 140 for 2 in 99 balls. Naeem Malik coming one down smashed a match-winning unbeaten 56 in 44 balls with 8 hits to the fence as he first added 76 in 48 balls for the 2nd wkt with Ali Nawaz who made 49 in 27 balls with 7 fours and a six and then 59 in 46 balls for the unbroken 3rd wkt with Ghazanfar Abbas who added unbeaten 27 in 23 balls with 3 boundaries after Ijaz Butt (0) returned on the 5th ball of the innings.
Match # 11A: In the last encounter of the day Tuskers opting to bat first managed 150 for 7 in 16 overs due to a deduction of 2 overs against Hyderabad Sharks on ground # 9. Skipper Yashik Alangad played fine innings of 71 in 37 balls studded with 2 sixes and 12 fours as he first added 64 in 39 balls for the first wkt with Mohammed Salim (6) and then 32 for the 2nd wkt with Badushah who made 39 in 21 balls with 4 huge sixes. Sharfuddin remained unbeaten on 21 off 12 balls to get to 150. Usman bowled well to get 4 wkts for 23 runs.
Hyderabad Sharks re-joining WPCA after almost 4 tournaments batted with a bang here as they successfully chased the victory target of 153 for 4 in 98 balls to win by 6 wkts with 10 balls to spare. Mohammed Ilyas looking to dominate here in Jeddah batted magnificently well for his unbeaten 66 in 42 balls with 7 fours and a six as he first stitched 68 in 44 balls for the first wkt with Mohammed Shahzad who made 18. After the fall of Shahzad, Hyderabad sharks lost 2 quick wkts but then Mohammed Atif with 25 and Mohammed Usman with 22 not out took them to the glory of winning against tuskers.
