Category Uncategorized

Barcelona are reportedly interested in signing Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah this summer, as speculation regarding his future continues.

The Lowdown: Salah’s future up in the air

Salah has been a sensational player for the Reds since joining from Roma in 2017 – he has scored 153 goals in 239 appearances and you could certainly argue he is the world’s best footballer on current form, with 38 direct goal involvements from 36 matches in all competitions this term.

Unfortunately, Liverpool and the player’s representatives are yet to agree a new deal for the 29-year-old, with his current contract expiring in the summer of 2023.

Salah’s future continues to dominate the headlines and a fresh transfer rumour has now emerged.

The Latest: Barca keen on move

According to Sport [via Sport Witness], Salah’s name is ‘on the table’ at Barca, as they look to pull off a stunning move at the end of the season.

Their interest in the Egyptian has ‘grown in recent days’ and they see him as an alternative to Erling Haaland if they fail to sign the Borussia Dortmund striker.

The report claims they are ‘monitoring’ Salah’s contract talks, which are ‘far from reaching an agreement’.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/latest-liverpool-transfer-news-25/” title=”Latest Liverpool transfer news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The Verdict: Such a sticky situation

This feels like a saga that is going to run and run, which is far from ideal, considering Liverpool are battling across four competitions and could do without any distractions.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

In truth, it looks as though Salah is going to move on if a compromise can’t be met, with the Reds willing to up his wages but his agent seemingly still unhappy with the terms offered, even going so far as to drop hints on Twitter during Jurgen Klopp’s press conferences.

It would be devastating for Liverpool to lose their star player, but equally, no individual is bigger than the club and if an agreement doesn’t come to fruition, the Reds will continue to shine without him, hopefully using the funds received to good effect.

In other news, Liverpool are thought to be leading the race to sign one player. Find out who it is here.

Mahela Jayawardene blamed England’s defensive approach in the first innings for the dull end to the second Test © AFP

Mahela Jayawardene, Sri Lanka’s captain, says he was surprised at England’s approach towards the match, adding that the tourists need to display more enterprise to win a Test in Sri Lanka. England, trailing Sri Lanka by 197 runs after the first innings, finished on 250 for3 in their second before rain washed out the final session of the match.”We were definitely pushing for a victory to seal the series. Wewere disappointed [with] the way England batted in the first innings on this pitch, scoring 351 runs in five sessions,” Jayawardene said.”It’s quite difficult to win a Test match when you bat like that. If England wantto win a Test, they probably need to bat quicker than that and put pressure onthe opposition.”We managed to bowl them out in the first innings which was a great effort onthis pitch. The second innings we knew the pitch was going to be very slow and theonly way we could have had any chance of picking up early wickets was with the newball.”Two or three quick wickets and Murali could have come into play, but the openersbatted really well. Once the ball got soft it was very difficult. We tried a fewoptions but I knew the pitch was too slow to get anything out of it. We needed tobe patient and play a waiting game but the rain came and there was no chance atall.”Jayawardene seemed to rue the fact that Sri Lanka were unable to press for more runs on the fourth morning following his dismissal. “If I was around with Prasanna [Jayawardene] we probably could have added a few more runs. For me, the question was whether to give them a 125 or 150-run lead. The only way I could have put pressure on them would be a bigger total. Even had they batted for two sessions they still wouldn’t have been able to get to our lead and they would have been under pressure. “In the absence of a second spinner, Jayawardene had to avail the services of Chamara Silva, a part-time legspinner, who responded with the wicket of Alastair Cook.”Chamara did the job of a second spinner for the first time. If we had another guy like Sanath [Jayasuriya] who could bowl 15 overs, especially in the second innings, it would have been handy. The combination we’ve got now doesn’t allow that option. When we go to Galle [for the third Test] we will look at the pitch and see whether we can help Murali around a bit more.”If we can ask Chamara to bowl more at practice and develop him into a guy who canprobably bowl 10 to15 overs in a Test match, that would be handy. We need a partner for Murali in the long run, not just this series especially on home conditions,” he said.Jayawardene also said that he missed the services of Farveez Maharoof, the allrounder, who was ruled out with an ankle injury. “If he was around, we could have gone with a 6-5combination because he can bat and bowl.”The teams head to Galle for the third and final Test, starting on December 18.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Ranadeb Bose was the pick of the Bengal bowlers with 5 for 71 as he took hisseason’s tally to 57 wickets © Cricinfo Ltd

Even though they had their work cut out chasing a huge 472 Bengal batted withpurpose and determination, reaching 98 for 2 at stumps on the third day of the Ranji Trophy final. After Mumbai scored 294 in their second innings they left themselves with two days and a session to take ten Bengal wickets, but they found the going tough. Deep Dasguptaled the resistance as Bengal put their timid first innings effort firmly behind.On a pitch that began to turn appreciably, Mumbai looked for initialbreakthroughs from their star duo of Ajit Agarkar and Zaheer Khan, butneither could replicate the penetrative bowling of the first innings. Itwas only when Amol Muzumdar brought about the first change, bringingWilkin Mota into the attack, that the first breach was made. ArindamDas, who had seen off 44 balls for 10, chased a wide delivery and the edgeflew thick and fast to Wasim Jaffer in the slips cordon. Jaffer reactedsharply, snapping up the difficult offering and Bengal were 39 for 1.Then Dasgupta and Abhishek Jhunjhunwala continued the resistance, seeingoff Mota and Agarkar’s second spell. Dasgupta was in especially god touch,picking boundaries off Agarkar with ease. Once again it was achange in the bowling that brought rewards, as Ramesh Powar floated one into Jhunjhunwala and won the appeal for lbw. Replays suggested thatthere might have been a bit of bat involved, but the umpire ruled in thefavour of the bowler, leaving Bengal at 65 for 2.From there on, though, there was no success for Mumbai as Dasgupta, whobatted almost three hours for his 43, and Manoj Tiwary, took Bengal to 98for 2 at stumps. The target of 472 is miles away, with 374 still needed,but the fight Bengal showed augurs well. With two days to go in the game,Powar could well play a big role, being the lone spinner in the attack.

‘In the first innings he had stamped hisauthority on the game in dramatic fashion, but in the second dig Sachin Tendulkar wasdecidedly less assured’ © Getty Images

When it was Bengal’s turn to bowl, earlier in the day, it was onceagain Ranadeb Bose who did the job, picking up 5 for 71 as he took hisseason’s tally to 57 wickets. A decent Sunday crowd – probably the best ofthe game – gathered at the Wankhede Stadium when the day began, inanticipation of Tendulkar’s arrival at the crease. They did not have towait all that long, for Jaffer popped a return catch to Ranadeb Boseearly in the day. Jaffer had made 53.A huge roar greeted Tendulkar as he walked out to the middle, but he wasdefinitely not at his best. In the first innings he had stamped hisauthority on the game in dramatic fashion, but in the second dig he wasdecidedly less assured. More than once he was surprised by a bit of extrapace or bounce and took blows on the body, most noticeably when he waslate on a pull shot against Ashok Dinda and was struck flush on thehelmet. Saurav Sarkar even managed to draw out an error when Tendulkar hitone uppishly back at the bowler, but Sarkar juggled the offering and couldnot latch on to it.Still, interspersed between some less than perfect shots, were the gems.The whip through the on side consistently beat the field, and back-footpunches through cover sped away with ease. In the end, it was a change inthe bowling that brought relief for Bengal. Dinda, who had bowled a longspell, gave way to Sourashish Lahiri, and Tendulkar took a bit of achance, attempting to hit a short ball wide of the man at cover, but onlymanaged to find Tiwary. It wasn’t the best ball of the day, but Lahiri hadTendulkar’s wicket for the second time in the game, this time for only 43runs.Muzumdar and Abhishek Nair ensured that there was no further damage, andtook Mumbai to lunch on 220 for 5. The post-lunch session proved to bemore entertaining than the first, with Nair batting more freely as thelead burgeoned past 400. He struck five boundaries and a six in his 34,while Muzumdar was more conventional, getting to 37. But the man to watchwas Ranadeb Bose, who bowled with impressive stamina and purpose even with histeam’s chances fast fading as Mumbai ended on 294. Bengal have begun well but it will be uphill all along as they battle a mammoth total.

The dispute between players and board which has brought Zimbabwe cricket to its knees in recent months appears to be on the verge of being settled after a weekend of meetings between representatives of both sides.Last Friday it appeared that the situation had again broken down, but over the weekend Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) agreed to meet with Clive Field, the players’ representative who it had shut out of negotiations earlier in the week. A number of stumbling blocks were removed when the two sides sat down on Sunday.Twenty-two players have been offered the seven-month contracts which run until the end of August, with 16 having already signed. Three of those offered contracts – Sean Williams, Chamunorwa Chibhabha and Graeme Cremer – are currently in Sri Lanka with the Zimbabwe squad for the Under-19 World Cup.The board agreed that the new contracts could be index-linked to the US dollar. Until now, ZC’s offer had made no allowance for inflation, which is currently running at close to 600%, and had also pegged salaries to an unrepresentative local exchange rate.The players will also be free to take unpaid leave at the end of the proposed tour to the Caribbean in May to enable them to play cricket overseas. Any who do not find such work will return to Zimbabwe where they will be paid the basic retainer.Although some players have yet to sign the contracts, it is expected that most will do so within the next 48 hours. Four others will be considered for contracts after medical assessment. They are Gavin Ewing, Douglas Hondo, Mluleki Nkala and Tinashe Panyangara.Dion Ebrahim was not offered a new deal, and he is reported to have joined a club in the United Kingdom. While he said he was available for selection on a tour-by-tour basis, Hamilton Masakadza asked for study leave for his university studies in South Africa, while Stuart Matsikenyeri turned down the offer.Signed contracts Andy Blignaut, Elton Chigumbura, Charles Coventry, Keith Dabengwa, Terrence Duffin, Anthony Ireland, Blessing Mahwire, Bernard Mlambo, Christopher Mpofu, Tawanda Mupariwa, Allan and Waddington Mwayenga, Edward Rainsford, Vusumuzi Sibanda, Gregory Strydom and Prosper Utseya.

Can anything stifle Adam Gilchrist’s ability on the international stage?© Getty Images

Had he been a cricket writer, Oscar Wilde’s novel might have been renamed . He may not possess Wilde’s poetic ability but even the great playwright could not deny Adam Gilchrist’s ability on the cricketing stage.Glenn McGrath has shown in this match why he is a living legend but, leaving the immortal Sir Donald Bradman on his rightful pedestal, it is hard to imagine there ever being a more important cricketer than Adam Gilchrist. To put his achievements into Trans-Tasman perspective, if he was a New Zealander, his 14 Test centuries would be second to Martin Crowe’s 17.From 201 for 6, Gilchrist, batting at No.8 after Jason Gillespie was used as a night watchman, guided his team through to 413 and away from danger with a blistering 121 from 126 balls. Before Gilchrist’s arrival Simon Katich had given Australia some momentum with a gritty display of attack and defence; after it he proved the perfect foil.If he was a rugby player Katich would be dubbed a utility. Since his Test debut at Leeds in 2001 he’s been both in and out of the side and up and down the batting order. In Sri Lanka he lost his place to Andrew Symonds for two Tests, and in India he was given Ricky Ponting’s No. 3 spot before being dumped again for Darren Lehmann.Katich’s effort today was symbolic of why Australia continues to be so successful. Players given a start take their chances and standards never drop. Gilchrist saw little strike for a period after the second new ball was taken and Katich responded with a flurry of boundaries to move rapidly from 68 to his second Test century. The 86 he scored from 20 fours and one six reflected Katich’s expertise at punishing anything wayward and exceeded Gilchrist’s 84.Had he fallen cheaply his side would have been in deep trouble but Gilchrist amazed again. Two early sixes in one Daniel Vettori over made it clear to all that Gilchrist’s natural game would prevail over the match situation. The pickets were peppered further when Stephen Fleming reintroduced the pace trio of Chris Martin, James Franklin and Iain O’Brien and it was left to Vettori and Nathan Astle to perform a rescue act.Vettori recovered to outfox Gilchrist and wrap up the tail. His arm ball, especially, was spot on, leading to numerous leg-before shouts and the dismissal of Gillespie. Vettori’s analysis of 40.2-13-106-5 continued his outstanding form against Australia: six of his 12 five-wicket bags have been in trans-Tasman Tests.The challenge for New Zealand is to bat Australia out of the game, something they’ve had little success with since John Bracewell became coach. Excluding a stroll-in-the-park victory in Bangladesh in October, when they batted third, New Zealand have avoided losing only once from seven attempts – way back in December 2003 against Pakistan.The 212-run partnership between Katich and Gilchrist was four short of Australia’s record for the seventh wicket against New Zealand, which was made at the same ground in February 1977 by Doug Walters and Gary Gilmour. Perhaps it was appropriate that the record was not broken for the final 80 runs of the Walters-Gilmour stand were made after the pair celebrated Walters’ century the day before by drinking well into the night. Although New Zealand could do with a similar effort in these professional times, it’s unlikely they’ll adopt the same preparation.

Chittagong 61 for 2 trail Dhaka 143 (Alamgir 5-44) by 82 runs
ScorecardDespite losing two early wickets, Chittagong had the better of the day and restricted Dhaka to only 143 on the second day of their Mirzapore Tea National Cricket League match at the Bangabandhu National Stadium. Chittagong ended the day on 61 for 2, with Mohammad Rafique snapping up both the wickets.Dhaka began the day on a precarious note (75 for 4 overnight) and things just got worse as they put in an insipid batting display. Only Halim Shah offered some resistance with a gritty 208-ball 39.Gazi Alamgir, the young medium-pacer, wrapped up the Dhaka innings by picking upthe last two wickets with successive deliveries to finish with fine figures of 5 for 44. Yasin Arafat, the offspinner, conceded 35 runs in 19 overs for his three scalps – including Khalid Mahmud, the captain.Chittagong lost the wickets of Anisul Hakim and Masumud Dowla before the close of play. Anisul was caught in the slips and Masumud offered a catch to Rashedul Haq at gully. Masumud made 29 off 48 balls that contained five fours.Sylhet 102 and 15 for 2 trail Rajshahi 200 for 9 dec (Hasanuzzaman 77, Samad 5-41) by 102 by 83 runs
ScorecardAt Rangpur Cricket Garden, a 100-run sixth wicket partnership betweenHasanuzzaman and Shamimul Haq guided Rajshahi to a 98-run first-inningslead. Sylhet were in trouble when they batted again and lost two wickets before stumps were drawn.Sylhet’s bowling effort was lead by Nabil Samad, who bagged five wickets, but even that could not stop Rajshahi surging ahead. Hasanuzzaman cracked 11 fours on his way to 77 off 112 balls, while Shamimul Haq was unbeaten on 33.Khulna v Barisal
ScorecardThe second day’s play at the Jessore Stadium was also called off due to rain without a ball being bowled.

Successful New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming was at last able to reflect on a victory where conditions were well down on the list of things to talk about from the game.New Zealand took full advantage of a good one-day pitch in Napier to beat India by 35 runs and go 2-0 up in the seven-match series.”It was a good game of cricket, the guys played very well and they enjoyed the challenge of the wicket today, the bowlers probably enjoyed the challenge as well actually having to muck in and get the ball in the right areas and do some hard yards. I’m very pleased with our fielding performance and very, very pleased with the win.”We felt pretty comfortable with 254. You could always ask for more but we thought the groundwork was done pretty well. We had a good partnership at the top and there were good cameos throughout. The running between the wickets was a stand out and probably the basics were done very well throughout the day and that’s where we out-scored India the most.”You saw some very good shot-making today and you also saw a very good game of cricket,” he said.The New Zealanders have been on the receiving end of the Indian batting in the past and have known all through the tour what they were likely to do in good conditions. Fortunately for them it was only Virender Sehwag who took advantage of the situation.”You finally saw today what they are capable of. We’ve known that the whole way through. It was good today to see one of them fire but us still have a win.”The bowlers had continued the good job they had been doing all season and Daryl Tuffey was leading the way.”We bowled in good channels and good areas to these guys,” he said.Mathew Sinclair went a long way towards cementing his World Cup berth with a score of 78 and a share in a 136-run partnership with Nathan Astle for the second wicket, a stand that fell two runs short of equalling the record for the wicket against India.”It’s been a long time coming,” Sinclair said, “but obviously with the World Cup coming it’s good to get some of that form under my belt.”He said that his prior knowledge of what to expect from the pitch as the result of playing in the Central Districts side that met India in their pre-Test warm-up match had been useful in his batting today.Wicket-keeper Brendon McCullum, in only his second One-Day International wearing the gloves had an outstanding day with a highly-polished performance and a share of the New Zealand record for ODIs. His four catches and a stumping equalled the five dismissals made by Adam Parore against the West Indies in Goa in India in 1994/95.”I wasn’t aware of the record. The bowlers have got to nick them and it was nice to get underway with a straightforward one at the start.”I’m happy with the way things are going at the moment.”It’s great to turn in a reasonable performance,” he said.McCullum said the players were feeling the heat from other players around the country but he thought that was good for everyone.And as the ‘keeper who has to do the hard work behind the stumps no matter the pitch conditions, he found the going a lot easier today than in the first match in Auckland.

A fighting 70 by P Patel helped Saurashtra come good in their secondinnings and salvage a draw against Gujarat in their West Zone LeagueUnder-14 tournament match at the Gujarat Stadium in Ahmedabad on Monday.Opting to bat on the opening day on Saturday, Gujarat amassed 357 runs, thehighlights being that three batsmen got into the eighties. Opener S Patel(89) was the first significant contributor. He shared a opening stand of 59runs with A Padhya (13) and then a second wicket stand of 66 runs ensuedbetween S Patel and M Patel. The second batsman to be dismissed in theeighties was F Guard (87). He put on 124 runs for the fifth wicket with TBrahmbhatt (86). Thereafter none of the other batsmen made any substantialcontributions and the innings folded up in the 121st over.Saurashtra’s response was a disaster as Guard (4 for 51) and Sunny Patel (3for 13) ran through the side. The topscorer in the total of 143 was P Patelwith 34 runs to his credit. Saurashtra followed on, 214 runs behind. On thefinal day, however they put up a gallant fight even after losing an earlywicket, that of S Jackson (0) trapped leg before by S Patel in the first over.Then the other opener K Makwana (53) was joined by V Rajan (61) andtogether they took the score to 101. After their dismissals, P Patel (70not out) and R Dave (35) took the score along to 192. But it was P Patelwho saved the day for Saurashtra as he remained unbeaten at the end whilesharing an unbeaten 63 run stand for the fifth wicket with P Parmer (21 notout). During his 179-minute stay at the crease, Patel faced 159 balls andhit eight boundaries as Saurashtra closed at 255 for four wickets.

Everton manager Frank Lampard could be looking to reshape his team for next season if they stay in the Premier League, with midfielders Allan, Jean-Philippe Gbamin and Andre Gomes failing to really justify the combined £66.24m spent on them.

The Brazilian has averaged a disappointing 6.65 match rating this season from Sofascore, while Gomes has averaged an even worse 6.36. Indeed, Gbamin is not even at the club anymore after being sent on loan to Russian side CSKA Moscow.

With none of those three being crucial figures at Goodison Park, Lampard may be looking to replace them with better quality players, and a current France international is the latest midfielder to be linked with a move to Merseyside.

What’s the news?

According to transfer specialist Ignazio Genuardi, who was speaking to French website But Football Club, Everton have made contact in recent months with Juventus ace Adrien Rabiot, who is up for sale after failing to kick on in Turin and establish himself as an important player for the Bianconeri.

With his contract expiring at the end of next season and his valuation just £16.2m according to Transfermarkt, the Frenchman could be available at a bargain price in the summer.

Massive improvement on current options

Despite seemingly not being wanted by his current club, Rabiot has made a total of 47 appearances for club and country this season, remaining a key part of Didier Deschamps’ plans for France and often showcasing his ability in Serie A.

Averaging a 6.95 Sofascore rating in the Italian top flight this season, the 26-year-old has made 25 appearances, with 21 coming from the start, and has contributed two assists amid completing 83% of his passes per game.

Dubbed a “complete” player by former Juventus manager Andrea Pirlo, the former PSG prospect ranks highly. among midfielders in Europe’s top five leagues and continental competitions. As per FBRef, He is in the top 10% for successful pressures per game (7.29), the top 6% for tackles in the defensive third per 90 (1.70) and the top 8% for carries into the penalty area per 90 (0.52).

Rabiot is the definition of a box-to-box midfielder, and although at times he has come under criticism, he has demonstrated for a number of years that he can compete at the top levels of the game – and the statistics suggest that he would immediately improve a lacklustre Everton midfield.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

His passing success rate this term is better than any Toffees midfielder except the on-loan Donny van de Beek, while his match average of 1.4 dribbles per game is second only to Demarai Gray in Lampard’s entire squad.

Those comparisons suggest that the Everton boss desperately needs a player of Rabiot’s quality at Goodison Park in order to add more thrust and ball-playing ability from midfield.

In other news: Moshiri suffered Everton howler over “clinical” 21-goal machine with “pure enthusiasm”

Group A

Hasan Raza scored his sixth first-class double-century as Habib Bank Limited (HBL) had Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) on the run at the United Bank Limited (UBL) Sports Complex. Facing a big HBL first-innings total of 419, SSGC had crashed to 194 for 8 in reply still requiring another 76 runs to avoid the follow-on. Hasan, who over a decade ago had become the youngest Test cricketer ever, had reached his 32nd first-class century on Friday with an unbeaten 158 and was eventually dismissed for 204 that included 20 fours and a six. He added 132 runs for the ninth wicket with Fahad Masood (40 off 61) to take his team past 400 after being 281 for 8 at one stage. Sohail Khan took the last two wickets to fall and finished with 6 for 102, his career-best figures. In reply, Saeed Bin Nasir, with an unbeaten 88, was the lone fighter for SSGC as they slumped to 91 for 5. Having faced 175 balls and hit 12 fours and two sixes, Nasir will have Sohail for company as he sets off reducing the damage for his team on the penultimate day.Despite a century by Afsar Nawaz, Karachi Whites were fighting to at least procure the first-innings lead against Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) at the National Stadium. Resuming on 279 for 7, Karachi were bowled out for 315. Afsar’s 105, his eighth first-class century, came off 180 deliveries with the help of 16 fours. In reply, WAPDA had reached 277 for 6 by close after suffering an early setback when their opening batsman Ahmed Said had to retire hurt but resumed his innings at the fall of the sixth wicket. There was a splendid 111-run second-wicket partnership between Tariq Aziz (70) and Nawaz Sardar (75) that laid a decent foundation for WAPDA’s reply.Hyderabad gave a spirited reply to National Bank of Pakistan (NBP) at Niaz Stadium as, facing NBP’s first-innings total of 477, the home team ended day two on 115 for no loss. Fawad Alam, the Pakistan left-hander, reached 151 after having started on 104 overnight. Mansoor Amjad (46) and Tahir Mughal (51*) gave good support to Alam as the last four wickets added 109 runs. For Hyderabad, the left-handed Aqeel Anjum, already with a double-century in the tournament, hit an unbeaten 49 while Azeem Ghumon contributed an unbeaten 61 off 135 deliveries as Hyderabad look towards 328 in order to avoid a follow-on.Multan too were off to a strong start against Lahore Ravi at the Gaddafi Stadium . Replying to Lahore’s 397, Multan finished at 184 for 2. A 152-run second-wicket partnership between Usman Tariq (69) and Rameez Alam (88*) helped Multan after they had lost their first wicket for 15. Overnight on 295 for 4, Lahore could only add 102 as Abdur Rauf and Rahat Ali grabbed quick wickets to restrict the home side.At the Sheikhupura Stadium, after having gained a 32-run first-innings lead in a low-scoring match against Sialkot, Faisalabad increased their advantage to 159 but lost five wickets in their second innings. Sialkot were undone by medium-pacer Asad Zarar and slow left-armer Saadat Munir, who had identical figures of four wickets for 32 runs. Left-arm spinner Nayyar Abbas took 4 for 28 as Faisalabad slumped in the second innings with only Ijaz Ahmed, their captain, standing firm with an unbeaten 49.

Group B

After having scored his maiden first-class double century, the 17-year-old Umar Akmal went on to score 248 for Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) before being run out against Karachi Blues at the Asghar Ali Shah Stadium. SNGPL reached a massive total of 624 for 5 before Mohammad Hafeez, their captain, declared. Azhar Shafiq chipped in with a valuable 100 and Mohammad Farrukh scored an unbeaten 51 to boost SNGPL’s total as Karachi, in reply, lost four wickets with only 54 runs on the board. A fightback by the middle-order saw them end the day on 174 for 6 at close.Following a Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) first-innings total of 465 for 9, Islamabad replied with 164 for 4 at Diamond Cricket Club Ground thanks mainly to an unbeaten 101 by opener Raheel Majeed. Earlier, KRL resumed on their overnight 345 for 3 and Azhar Ali took his unbeaten 123 overnight to 150 before being caught behind after hitting 18 fours in his 258-ball knock.Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) rode on a maiden first-class century by Sarfraz Ahmed as they compiled an impressive 436 in their first innings against Abbottabad at the Abbottabad Cricket Stadium. Sarfraz, batting at No. 6, faced only 153 balls for his 117 that included eight fours and two sixes. Abbottabad, in reply, were given a 90-run third-wicket stand that allowed them to finish the day on 151 for 3.Resuming on 44 for no loss, Rawalpindi extended their total to 328 for 7 – a lead of 155 – against Quetta at the KRL Stadium. All of Rawalpinidi’s batsmen, barring opener Usama Shahroon, went into double figures with Naved Ashraf (98) top-scoring for his team. Quetta, already placed at the bottom of the group, look set for another loss.Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) were all out for 398 in their first innings as Adnan Raza and Wajahatullah Wasti, ZTBL’s captain, scored half-centuries against Peshawar at Arbab Niaz Stadium. Resuming on 202 for 2, Inam-ul-Haq reached his century as his team scored at over three runs an over. Rahatullah was the pick of the Peshawar bowlers with four wickets and Bilal Khan picked up three. In reply, Peshawar openers put on 25 runs without being separated in the 12 overs possible before close.