SNGPL pick up eighth win of season

Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited have finished the group stage with eight wins out of nine matches, after beating United Bank Limited at the Jinnah Stadium. SNGPL now have an extra day's rest before their December 8-12 final against Peshawar, who are playing Quetta in the final round of matches. SNGPL's new-ball pair of Asad Ali and Bilawal Bhatti took six wickets between them to bowl United Bank Limited out for 301 in their second innings and set up an eight-wicket victory. Most of the work had been done on the first two days over which SNGPL had established a 266-run first-innings lead. United Bank lost wickets steadily on the third day and were 138 for 6 before Kashif Bhatti's 88 and Zafar Ali's 52 helped them get past the 300 mark. It was merely enough to set SNGPL a 36-run target, which they reached in five overs.

Peshawar are also on course for a win ahead of the final. They need six more wickets to beat Quetta, who finished the third day on 47 for 4 chasing 407 at the Arbab Niaz Stadium in Peshawar. Mohammad Fayyaz's 178 ensured Peshawar got to 212 for 8 declared in their second innings, leaving Quetta with a massive target. Fayazz's innings came off 247 balls and included 31 fours and a six. Twenty-year-old legspinner Shahzaib Ahmed took 6 for 90, giving him ten wickets in the match, but it is likely to come in a losing cause. Quetta's top order crumbled to left-arm quick Waqar Ahmed in the 16 overs they had to face at the end of the day and it will now take a remarkable turnaround for them to get anything out of the game.

Four wickets from left-arm spinner Nayyer Abbas, and unbeaten half-centuries from Saeed Anwar junior and Zain Abbas helped Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) win a low-scoring match against Lahore Ravi at the Lahore City Cricket Association Ground by ten wickets. The win was a convincing one in the end as Anwar and Zain Abbas chased down a target of 132 in just 18.4 overs without losing a wicket. Anwar hit nine fours and a six in reaching 63 not out off 56 balls while Zain Abbas had 12 fours and a six in his 69 off 57 balls. Nayyer has set up the win by helping bowl Lahore Ravi out for 175 in their second innings.

Karachi Whites need five more wickets to beat Lahore Shalimar at the National Bank of Pakistan Sports Complex in Karachi despite a bizarre decision from Karachi not to enforce the follow-on and then declare four overs into their second innings. Three wickets from seamer Tabish Khan helped Karachi bowl Lahore Shalimar out for 178, giving Karachi a 373-run first-innings lead. However, their captain Akbar-ur-Rehman did not enforce the follow-on, though his bowlers had only been in the field for 68 overs. Even more strangely, he let his batsmen bat just four overs, in which they reached 21 for 1, before declaring and leaving Lahore Shalimar 395 to chase in a day and around 25 overs. Lahore Shalimar then crumbled to 78 for 5 and look on course for a seventh loss of the season.

A century from Naved Yasin offered some resistance but Hyderabad are still favourites to beat Multan at the Bahawal Stadium in Bahawalpur. Yasin's 122 and Faisal Elahi's 52 were two of only three double-digit scores in Multan's first innings, in which they were bowled out for 249. Left-arm spinner Imran Chandio took 5 for 76 as Multan gave Hyderabad a 251-run lead. Hyderabad enforced the follow-on and reduced Multan to 37 for 3 by the end of the day.