Ijaz Ahmed jnr takes Faisalabad to their first win

After an early scare, Faisalabad picked up their first points of the season, beating Multan by five wickets at the Bahawal Stadium in Bahawalpur. Set 126 to win, Faisalabad found themselves at 10 for 3 after fast bowler Abdur Rauf dismissed Shahid Siddiq caught behind for nought, and his new-ball partner Mohammad Mudassar got both Farrukh Shehzad and Asif Hussain in similar fashion for one run each. Faisalabad captain Ijaz Ahmed jnr calmed the situation as he put together 73 for the fourth wicket with wicketkeeper Mohammad Salman. Ijaz reached his half-century and then finished the match in style, with a six. Faisalabad moved up to eighth in the table, while Multan are stuck at the bottom with no points from eight games.

Habib Bank Limited were on the verge of a win against Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium despite the Pakistan opener Yasir Hameed's 171. While Hameed held up one end for ZTBL, legspinner Danish Kaneria, who has been left out of Pakistan's Test squad for their tour of New Zealand, kept picking up wickets at the other, finishing with figures of 8 for 99, and ZTBL were bowled out for 361. Hameed, who started the day on 88 carried his bat but received inadequate support from the other end, with captain Imran Nazir's 51 the second-highest score for ZTBL. Ahmed Shehzad's 45 helped HBL reach 80 for 1 by the end of the day, leaving them 100 to win on the last day.

Seamer Sadaf Hussain's four wickets helped Rawalpindi come to within striking distance of a win against Islamabad at the Diamond Club Ground. The visitors reduced Islamabad to 230 for 9 by the end of the third day and are just 43 runs behind after their first-innings effort of 405. Sadaf and his new-ball partner Rizwan Akbar took a wicket each early for Rawalpindi before Nauman Masood and Zeeshan Mushtaq put on 102 for the third wicket. Seamer Rashid Latif got rid of both of them and the rest of Islamabad's batting line-up crumbled. Sadaf came back to rattle the tail as the hosts crashed from 210 for 5 to 228 for 9. Sadaf's four scalps puts him in second position in the list of top wicket-takers this season. Rawalpindi's tail had earlier added some useful runs to their overnight total of 353 for 7 with Latif getting 25 off 30 balls.

Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited fought back against National Bank of Pakistan on a rain-hit day at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad. Only 17 overs were bowled on the third day, but it was enough for SNGPL to strike four times and halt the progress of NBP's second innings, which had begun with a 97-run opening partnership. NBP, who led by 20 runs after the first innings, started the day in control of the match with openers Nasir Jamshed and Rashid Riaz taking guard at 73 for 0. They added another 24 before seamer Zulqarnain had Jamshed caught behind for 44, and Asad Ali dismissed Riaz in similar fashion for 38. Umar Amin and Fawad Alam both fell for ducks as they ended the day on 110 for 4. NBP still have the edge but will need some useful contributions from their middle-order to reach a winning total.

An unbeaten century by Fahad Iqbal gave Pakistan International Airlines the advantage in their match against table-toppers Water and Power Development Authority at the Marghzar Cricket Ground in Islamabad. Iqbal came in with PIA in trouble at 108 for 5, but he and Sheharyar Ghani, who made 89, rebuilt the innings and got them to 312 for 8. That left WAPDA with 326 to win. WAPDA openers Rafatullah Mohmand and Jahangir Mirza saw out 4.2 overs at the end of the third day and will start the fourth at 6 for 0.

Rameez Raja (2) struck an aggressive second first-class century as Karachi Blues made a better effort in their second innings after Sialkot enforced the follow-on at the National Stadium in Karachi. Resuming their first innings at 136 for 8, Karachi Blues were rolled out for 160, conceding a lead of 219, with seamer Imran Malik finishing with 6 for 38 - his first five-wicket haul in his sixth first-class match. Rameez then took centre-stage, counterattacking with 105 off 96 balls, while Murtaza Majeed provided support. The pair added 119 for the second wicket, setting up the platform for the home side's defiance, but Nabeel Malik made some late inroads to give Sialkot the ascendancy. Majeed was unbeaten on 71 and, with his side just 31 ahead with six wickets remaining, he will look to bat for long on the final day.