Rawalpindi beat Islamabad in National One-Day Cup

ISLAMABAD: Iftikhar Ahmed (61 not out) and Naved Malik (60) guided Rawalpindi to a four-wicket win against Islamabad as the National One-Day Cup for Regions started at four centres of the twin cities on Thursday.

Islamabad, asked to bat first, were restricted to 196-9 in 50 overs at the Pindi Stadium. Rawalpindi reached the target in just 40.1 overs with Iftikhar and Naved hitting fine half centuries.

Naved added 99 runs for opening wicket with Azhar Ali (52) which set the tone for Rawalpindi’s win. Naved hit 11 boundaries in his 66-ball knock while Azhar cracked seven fours. It was then left to Iftikhar to put the icing on the cake as he struck 11 boundaries in his 53-ball knock to take Rawalpindi home.

Hamza Nadeem (2-51) and spinner Raza Hasan (2-26) bowled well for Islamabad. Off-spinner Arsal Shaikh (1-31) also showed promise.

Earlier, Islamabad got off to a poor start when they lost Shan Masood (16), Abid Ali (0) and Saad Ali (0) with only 28 runs on the board. Faizan Riaz (53), Shahzad Azam (36) and Zohaib Ahmad (31) then added some useful runs to help Islamabad reach close to 200.

Left-armer Sohail Tanvir (4-43) did the early damage with Sadaf Hussain (2-34) and Yasir Ali (2-43) also bowling well for Rawalpindi.

Scores in brief: At Pindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi: Islamabad Region 196-9 in 50 overs (Faizan Riaz 53, Shahzad Azam 36, Zohaib Ahmed 31, Shahid Yousaf 25; Sohail Tanveer 4-43, Sadaf Hussain 2-34, Yasir Ali 2-43). Rawalpindi Region 197-6 in 40.1 overs (Iftikhar Ahmed 61 not out, Naved Malik 60, Azhar Ali 52; Raza Hassan 2-36, Hamza Nadeem 2-51). Result: Rawalpindi Region won by 4 wickets.

At National Ground, Islamabad: Lahore Region Blues 272-7 in 43 overs (Muhammad Saad 96, Sami Aslam 44, Saad Nasim 44, Kamran Akmal 41, Umar Akmal 29; Umaid Asif 3-47, Zafar Gohar 2-59). Lahore Region Whites 273-8 in 43 overs (Usman Sallahuddin 94 not out, Adnan Akmal 45, Umaid Asif 34, Hamza Paracha 29; Raza Ali Dar 2-26, Qaiser Ashraf 2-56, Aizaz Cheema 2-57). Result: Lahore Region Whites won by 2 wickets.

At Diamond Ground, Islamabad: Fata Region 219-10 in 46.4 (Khushdil Shah 61, Fawad Khan 39, Yasir Hameed 28, Muhammad Irfan 25 not out; Zohaib Ahmed 2-34, Azizullah 2-45, Taj Wali 2-49). Peshawar Region 223-3 45.1 (Sahibzada Farhan 88, Ashfaq Ahmed 58, Muhammad Rizwan 40 not out; Sohail Akhtar 2-38). Result: Peshawar Region won by 7 wickets.

At Krl Ground, Rawalpindi: Faisalabad Region 77-10 in 36 overs (Misbahul Haq 12; Anwar Ali 3-9, Rahat Ali 3-22, Ziaul Haq 3-22). Karachi Region Whites 79-5 in 25 (Akbarur Rehman 24 not out, Danish Aziz 16; Waqas Maqsood 3-14). Result: Karachi Region Whites won by 5 wickets.

At Diamond Ground, Islamabad: Fata Region 219-10 in 46.4 (Khushdil Shah 61, Fawad Khan 39, Yasir Hameed 28, Muhammad Irfan 25 not out; Zohaib Ahmed 2-34, Azizullah 2-45, Taj Wali 2-49). Peshawar Region 223-3 45.1 (Sahibzada Farhan 88, Ashfaq Ahmed 58, Muhammad Rizwan 40 not out; Sohail Akhtar 2-38). Result: Peshawar Region won by 7 wickets.

At Krl Ground, Rawalpindi: Faisalabad Region 77-10 in 36 overs (Misbahul Haq 12; Anwar Ali 3-9, Rahat Ali 3-22, Ziaul Haq 3-22). Karachi Region Whites 79-5 in 25 (Akbarur Rehman 24 not out, Danish Aziz 16; Waqas Maqsood 3-14). Result: Karachi Region Whites won by 5 wickets.