Ton-up Kamran rescues KP after early wobbles

KARACHI: On the opening day of the second-phase fixtures in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy here on Wednesday, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa staged a great comeback with an unbeaten century from Kamran Ghulam against Balochistan.

As Sindh paceman Tabish Khan selected two late wickets, reigning champions Central Punjab lost initiative when Southern Punjab’s first innings concluded in their top-of-the-table clash against Northern Kamran.

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Both Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan joined their fixture with an equal number of points at the SBP Sports Center, but the latter moved ahead by taking three stump bowling points.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa endured early jolts when Khurram Shehzad replaced Musadiq Ahmed (1) and Israrullah (19) as well as Fakhar Zaman, who was removed from the New Zealand-bound Pakistan squad after contracting fever on the eve of the departure of the team, to leave them reeling at 41-3. Fakhar was caught for four years by LBW.

Mohammad Wasim (8) and Adil Amin (4) were then rejected by fellow seamer Umaid Asif as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were in dispute at 64-5.Kamran

But as the pair put on 95 for the sixth wicket in 129 minutes, Kamran, who had to break at 15-2, then found a stable partner in wicket-keeper/batsman Rehan Afridi. Rehan dropped to left-arm paceman Taj Wali for 58 at this stage.

By adding 65 with Kamran, Captain Khalid Usman, fresh from his maiden first-class century in the previous round, helped solidify the innings. 27 scored by Khalid.Kamran

However, Kamran displayed stamina as the 25-year-old right-hander ended his fifth century at first-class level before ending the day on 130 (227 balls, 14 boundaries and two sixes) as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa posted a respectable 292-9.Kamran

Test discard On his 30th birthday, Usman Salahuddin hit 80 thus inspiring Central Punjab to 232-5 after the toss was not contested when Sindh decided to field first at the National Stadium in the televised game.

But when they produced 165-2, Central Punjab should have been better positioned. Left-handed opener Ali Zaryab added 56 on both sides of the lunch break as he and Usman shared a second-wicket partnership of 115.Kamran

Mohammad Saad and skipper Saad Nasim both dropped to Tabish at the fag end of the day’s action in the 40s, making 41 and 44 respectively, to make the Asad Shafiq-led Sindh have a slight advantage.

After winning the toss and agreeing to bat as they slumped to 46-3 at the UBL Sports Complex, Southern Punjab also endured hiccups up front. As the left-hander top-scored with 89, Umar Siddique created a captain’s innings while stitching a fourth-wicket stand of 143 with Saif Badar, who scored 81.

Close of play scores on Wednesday (day one of four):

First XI, sixth round:

CENTRAL PUNJAB 232-5 in 87 overs at the National Stadium, Karachi (Usman Salahuddin 80, Ali Zaryab 56, Saad Nasim 44, Mohammad Saad 41; Tabish Khan 2-28) vs SINDH.

SOUTHERN PUNJAB 285 in 86.3 overs (Umar Siddique 89, Saif Badar 81, Agha Salman 53, Aamir Yamin 26, Zeeshan Ashraf 25, Sadaf Hussain 3-45, Munir Riaz 2-39, Nauman Ali 2-51); NORTHERN 6-0 in 1 over At UBL Sports Complex, Karachi:

KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA 292-9 in 83.4 overs (Kamran Ghulam 130 not out, Rehan Afridi 58, Khalid Usman 27, Umaid Asif 3-69, Khurram Shehzad 3-78, Taj Wali 2-70) vs BALOCHISTAN at SBP Sports Complex, Karachi.