Daily Times

As the battle to secure the top two spots on the points table continues to flare up, the ninth round of the four-day first-class Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, which commences on Monday, 25 November, promises to keep the fans on the edge of their seats. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s big win by an innings and 122 runs over Balochistan has helped them leapfrog Southern Punjab and Northern to the second spot and another win in either of their next two matches will go a long way in guaranteeing them a berth in the final of the country’s premier first-class tournament. They, however, have a challenging task at their hands as they face table-toppers Central Punjab, who have three wins in eight matches, at NBP Sports Complex Karachi.

Central Punjab vs Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at NBP Sports Complex Karachi: Central Punjab enter the match after securing a draw against Sindh on the back of second innings centuries by the Akmal brothers. They were behind Sindh for the most part of the match as their star-studded batting line-up failed to live up to the expectations in the first innings. But, gutsy 122 and 166 by Umar and Kamran in the second innings ensured Central Punjab’s impeccable record stayed intact. Uplifted by their maiden win of the tournament, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will try to take a leaf out of Sindh’s book and look to strangle Central Punjab’s batting upfront. That it was their bowling unit which delivered the win is something which will further add to the excitement when the two top-ranked teams go toe-to-toe.

Southern Punjab vs Sindh at National Stadium Karachi: Sindh, placed fifth on the points table, need a win to stay alive in the tournament. But, that they are facing a side to whom they have lost previously is bound to add to the pressure in a match which will be live-streamed on the PCB’s YouTube channel. Sindh made an impressive comeback, putting up performances in both batting and bowling departments, in the last round after their loss to Northern, who then were languishing at the bottom of the points table. Four of their batsmen scored half-centuries, including captain Sarfaraz Ahmed, with the bowling unit, spearheaded by Tabish Khan, tightening the screws around the Central Punjab batsmen. They will look to build on their performance in the last match against third-ranked Southern Punjab, who succeeded in securing a draw against Northern after being forced to follow-on thanks to Umar Siddiq’s brilliant second innings century, which was supported by half-centuries from Zeeshan Ashraf and Sohaib Maqsood. So, along with working out the strategy to ensure the highest run-getter of the tournament, Sami Aslam, is not allowed the time to adjust, Sarfaraz will also have to draw plans for Umar, Zeeshan and Sohaib.

Balochistan vs Northern at UBL Sports Complex Karachi: Northern followed up their maiden win of the season in the seventh round with an imposing performance against Southern Punjab at KRL Stadium, Rawalpindi. Their batting line-up scored 463 runs at an impressive run-rate of 4.22 and their bowlers, by taking 14 wickets, tightened the screws to enforce a follow-on. They play Balochistan, who are at the bottom of the points table after a crushing defeat, and will look to make the most of the pressure on the Imran Farhat-led side. Like Sindh, Balochistan have to win their last two matches to stay in contention. There was, however, a silver lining for Balochistan from the previous match as Mohammad Asghar recorded six for 121 – fifth best bowling figures in an innings this tournament – as he continues to impress at the first-class level. His captain will be pinning hopes on him to deliver come Monday.