Sajid Khan takes five to give Peshawar handy lead over Lahore

ABBOTTABAD: Peshawar’s captain Sajid Khan bagged a five-wicket haul to propel his side to a commanding 116-run first innings’ lead over Lahore Whites in the second triangular stage fixture of the ongoing Quaid-e-Azam Trophy (QEAT) 2024/25 here at the Abbottabad Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

Resuming their first innings from an overnight score of 293/7, Peshawar added 39 more crucial runs before getting bundled out for 332 in 72 overs.

Skipper Sajid helped his team to add valuable runs, courtesy of a sensible 43-run knock, coming from 76 deliveries and featuring seven boundaries.

In response, Lahore Whites could only accumulate 216 despite middle-order batter Obaid Shahid’s anchoring half-century.

Lahore had a shaky start to their innings as pacers Niaz Khan and Mir Hamza ran through their top order.

Coming out to bat at number five, Obaid put on a notable fight against a ruthless Peshawar bowling attack and top-scored with a gutsy 75 off 105 deliveries, laced with 11 boundaries.

Besides him, skipper Saad Nasim (36), Imran Dogar (27) and Attyab Ahmed (25) made notable contributions while four of their batters failed to score in double figures.

Sajid Khan was the standout bowler for Peshawar, registering brilliant bowling figures of 5/56, followed by Hamza and Niaz, who took three and two, respectively.

Peshawar, starting their second innings with a handy 116-run lead, were jolted by a fiery spell from Naseem Shah, which saw him taking two wickets in three overs for just one run.

Ahmed Bashir took the third wicket as Peshawar closed the day at 14/3, leading by 130 runs with seven wickets in hand.

Nabi Gul and Sajjad Ibraheem, unbeaten on 11 and one, respectively, will resume Peshawar’s second innings on day three.