HBL ride on Shehzad double-ton

Opener Ahmed Shehzad and Saleem Elahi made merry on the second day to put Habib Bank Limited in complete control against Faisalabad at the Iqbal Stadium. HBL lost an early wicket, that of Taufeeq Umar, but more than made up to build a first-innings lead of 180 with nine wickets still in hand. Shehzad smashed 24 fours and three sixes on his way to his maiden double-century in first-class cricket while Elahi, who, like his partner, has also played for the national team, played a patient hand to finish the day on 110. The pair added an unbeaten 307 for the second wicket and looks good for more as HBL aim to extend the lead to a margin that is large enough to enable them to force an innings win.

Babar Ali stormed to his maiden first-class hundred as Multan posted 226 for 5 in reply to Sui Northern Gas Pipelines first innings total of 368 at the Multan Cricket Stadium . Babar struck 17 fours and a six in his 114, which came off 140 balls. He was dismissed by Adil Raza, who was the pick of the bowlers, with 3 for 42 from 14 overs. Kashif Naved on 44 and Ahmed Raza on 30 were at the crease when play ended, having added 42 for the sixth wicket.

Adnan Akmal made 79 from 106, with 10 fours, and added 76 with Adil for the ninth wicket, to help push SNPL to 358. Left-arm spinner Ahmad Raza was the most successful bowler, taking 6 for 110 from 39 overs.

The contest between Islamabad and National Bank of Pakistan was even at the end of the second day at the Diamond Club Ground. The overnight batsmen Imad Wasim and Rauf Akbar took the Islamabad score past 300 on the second morning, with Imad reaching his maiden first-class century. The 109-run eighth-wicket stand was broken by left-arm spinning allrounder Qaiser Abbas, who finished with four wickets. But NBP's bowling lacked discipline; they bowled 24-no balls and the extras tally of 46 was the second-highest run-scorer for Islamabad, who were bowled out for 352. NBP looked in good shape in their response with opener Rashid Riaz (66) and Umar Amin, who played for Pakistan on the tour of England, adding 83 for the second wicket. But seamer Shehzad Azam rattled the line-up with three wickets with the score on 148 before Rehman Qadir and allrounder Hammad Azam steered their team to 201 for 5 at stumps, still 151 behind.

Left-arm seamer Mohammad Khalil ensured Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited held the edge against Rawalpindi at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. He grabbed 3 for 12 in 8.4 overs to seize the initiative after the Rawalpindi openers had put together a partnership of 92 and seemed good to wipe out the 120-run lead ZTBL had managed to build. Rawalpindi finished the day on 117 for 4, still three runs behind, but have opener Shoaib Nasir still batting on 56. Earlier in the day, fast bowler Sadaf Hussain ran through the ZTBL line-up, finishing with 6 for 69, his best figures to date. ZTBL looked set for a substantial lead with three of their batsmen, led by Shahid Yousuf who top scored with 70, reaching half-centuries. But the last six wickets fell for just 12 runs and ZTBL folded for 235 before fighting back again with the ball.

Water and Power Development Authority continued to dominate their contest against Sialkot at the Jinnah Stadium. They had bowled out Sialkot for 126 on the opening day and built a 213-run lead on the second, thanks to an unbeaten 112 from Ali Azmat. Azmat first supported opener Adil Nisar (93) in a 74-run stand for the fifth wicket. When Nisar fell, WAPDA were 180 for 5 and Sialkot had a chance to fight back. But wicketkeeper Ahmed Said, along with Azmat, who notched up his fourth first-class century, put their team firmly on top with an unbeaten 159-run stand and extending WAPDA's score to 339 for 5 at stumps.