Manzoor and Raza star for Karachi Zebras
A round-up of the ABN AMRO Cup Gold League matches that took place on March 6
Cricinfo staff
06-Mar-2007
Powered by centuries from Khurram Manzoor and Hasan Raza Karachi Zebras crushed Lahore Eagles by 152 runs . Put into bat, the Zebras rode on the back of the unbroken 200-run partnership between Manzoor and Raza to reach a huge 307 in their allotted overs. Rajesh Ramesh and Tanvir Ahmed rocked the top-order as Lahore Eagles slipped to a dismal 54 for 6, a position from which they never recovered.
Rawalpindi Rams tasted their first win with a thrilling eight-run victory over Faisalabad Wolves. Rams were struggling at 115 for 5 when Usman Saeed took control and guided them to a competitive 225 with a 121-ball 95. Babar Naeem grabbed four top-order wickets to leave the Wolves tottering at 94 for 6 before a 102-run partnership between Mohammad Laeeq and Mohammad Salman steadied the chase. Laeeq's run out opened the gates and Akhtar Ayub crashed through with a three-wicket haul as Wolves collapsed from 214 for 7 to be dismissed for 217.
A disciplined batting and bowling performance saw Karachi Dolphins register a 36-run upset victory over the favourites Sialkot Stallions. Nearly all the batsman got a start - four crossed 40 as the Dolphins reached a healthy 266. Stallions got to a decent start, reaching 54 without any loss of wickets but Anwar Ali struck twice in quick succession to peg them back. Stallions rallied through a half-century from Shahid Yousuf and were placed at 203 for 5 before falling in a heap the end. Fawad Alam and Atif Maqbool did the damage with the ball as five wickets fell for the addition of only 27 runs.