Northern are new Quaid-e-Azam Trophy champions

LAHORE: Northern created history here at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Tuesday when they crushed Sindh by an innings and 55 runs to win their maiden Quaid-e-Azam Trophy title inside four days of the five-day final.

Northern’s captain Umar Amin bagged the winning trophy and also Rs10,000,000.

Northern had been the finalist twice since the revamp of the domestic system in 2019-20. They were lucky the third time after losing out on the title in 2019-20 and 2021-22 seasons. Starting their second innings with a deficit of 309 runs, Sindh lost six wickets in the first session and were 105 for six at the lunch interval.

That the Sindh managed to score 254 in 56.2 overs was largely due to Fawad Alam’s 43rd first-class century which included a 63-run partnership with first innings top run-getter Asif Mehmood (21 off 33 balls) and a 62-run eighth wicket partnership with Muhammad Umar (36 off 31).

Fawad’s 113-run innings came off 130 balls, which included 18 fours. For Northern, Aamir Jamal and Musa Khan bagged three wickets apiece, while Mehran Mumtaz took two wickets.

This edition of Quaid-e-Azam Trophy will be remembered for Northern’s complete dominance in the tournament. Mohammad Huraira topped the batting charts with 1024 runs and was adjudged the best batter of the tournament. For his match-winning double-century, Huraira was also named player of the final.

The 20-year-old Mubasir Khan for his all-round performance (522 runs and 31 wickets) was named player of the tournament. He was also named the player of the tournament in last year’s Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.

Another young 21-year-old Rohail Nazir was named best wicket-keeper of the tournament. He completed 43 dismissals behind the stumps and scored 434 runs in the tournament.

Sindh’s Abrar Ahmed was named best bowler of the tournament. He took 43 wickets in 12 innings. The mystery spinner couldn’t feature for his side in the final as he was named in Pakistan squad for the three-match Test series against England.

Scores in brief: Northern beat Sindh by an innings and 55 runs Sindh 284 all out, 92.5 overs (Asif Mehmood 78, Fawad Alam 61 not out, Omair Bin Yousuf 36, Saad Khan 35, Saim Ayub 29; Musa Khan 3-61, Aamir Jamal 3-76, Mubasir Khan 2-59) and 254 all out, 56.2 overs (Fawad Alam 113, Muhammad Umar 36, Aaliyan Mahmood 33; Musa Khan 3-49, Aamir Jamal 3-63, Mehran Mumtaz 2-75) Northern 593 all out, 141 overs (Mohammad Huraira 221, Umar Amin 114, Umar Waheed 109, Rohail Nazir 94; Aaliyan Mahmood 4-96, Muhammad Umar 4-116).