Karachi Urban race to emphatic victory

A magnificent all-round performance by Karachi Urban spoiled Karachi Harbour's party, as they came from behind to clinch a nine-wicket win at the National Stadium. A 203-run opening stand between Khurram Manzoor, who smashed an unbeaten 120 off 116 deliveries, and Asif Zakir (83) helped Karachi Urban knock off a target of 248 in good time.

Urban, however, gained just six points as they had earlier surrendered the first-innings lead. At stumps on the penultimate day, Karachi Harbour appeared to be in no danger of being defeated at 120 for 4 in their second innings with an overall advantage of 140. However, first innings-centurions Fawad Alam (29) and Fahad Iqbal (9) fell to fast bowler Tanvir Ahmed with only four runs added, as their side slumped to 124 for 6.

Sarfraz Ahmed, the wicketkeeper, followed his first-innings 60 with an unbeaten 77 off 125 balls with 11 fours to help Karachi Harbour to 227. Tanvir finished with figures of 4 for 53 while offspinner Tahir Khan took 3 for 58.

A fighting, unbeaten 71 by Yasir Arafat, the Pakistan allrounder, could not prevent Peshawar from clinching a six-wicket win over Rawalpindi on the final day at the Pindi Cricket Stadium. Resuming their second innings at 127 for 6, still 40 runs in deficit, Rawalpindi doubled their score to finish on 254. Chasing 88 for victory, Peshawar had little trouble in knocking off the runs.

Rawalpindi owed plenty to Arafat, who battled close to three hours for his 120-ball innings. His seventh-wicket stand with Pervez Aziz (29) yielded 71, and another 53 came for the eighth wicket with Sohail Tanvir (28). However, the fast bowling combo of Fazl-e-Akbar and Riaz Afridi and Arshad Khan, the offspinning captain, all bagged three wickets. Riaz finished with eight in the match, following his first-innings 5 for 69.

Salman Butt, the Pakistan opener, was left short of a century for the second time in the match but his fighting unbeaten 94 saved Lahore Shalimar from an impending defeat on the final day against Faisalabad at the Gaddafi Stadium.

Last season's runners-up and champions in 2003-04, Faisalabad declared their second innings at an overnight 287 for 8, leaving Lahore Shalimar 287 for victory. Coming in at the fall of the first wicket -- fast bowler Junaid Zia was strangely promoted to open and failed to score -- Butt batted for five and a half hours, during which he faced 243 balls and hit 12 boundaries, and took Faisalabad to a draw.

Following his excellent 98 in the first innings, Butt, 22, added 47 for the second wicket with Sohail Ahmed (34), 51 for the fourth with Aamer Sajjad (20), and another 37 for the fifth with Jahangir Mirza (21). Mohammad Hussain, the veteran all-rounder, contributed 16 to the 38 added for the eighth wicket as Faisalabad reached 223 for 8.

Faisalabad were not only denied victory by Lahore Ravi, but also lost out on three first-innings lead points.

Shoaib Akhtar's absence - he left to join the national squad in South Africa - had no effect on Islamabad, who registered an an innings-and -51-run victory over Abbottabadon the final day at the Diamond Club Ground in Islamabad.

Overnight on 209 for 7, Abbottabad still required a further 188 to make Islamabad bat again. Riaz Kail and Nasir Jalil defied for a while through their 46-run eighth-wicket stand, but once Nasir departed Abbottabad had lost the fight and collapsed to 246. Riaz remained unbeaten with 38 from 61 balls with six fours.

Azhar Mahmood, the former Pakistan allrounder who took 2 for 19 in the first innings on Monday, finished with figures of 4 for 41.

Hyderabad made heavy weather of a modest target of 128 in a four wicket-win over Lahore Ravi on the final day at the Niaz Stadium.

Overnight on 188 for 8, Karachi Harbour scraped through to 219 thanks to wicketkeeper Adnan Kamal's 142-ball 77. Fast bowlers Wasim Khan (3 for 58) and Wahab Riaz (2 for 38) made Hyderabad's task slightly more difficult than they had anticipated, but Hanif-ur-Rehman chipped in with a brisk 49 from 54 balls.