MULTAN: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK)’s top-order batter Kamran Ghulam starred with a magnificent hundred after Mohammad Imran and Sajid Khan shone with three wickets each to power the defending champions beat Central Punjab (CP) by six wickets, here on Monday.

Set to chase 287, KPK comfortably steered to the victory in the 49th over, thanks to the astonishing century from Kamran, who top-scored for the side with 109.

The defending champions had an unwanted start to their run chase as the side lost their first wicket for a mere 22. Muhammad Mohsin Khan lost his wicket due to a run-out. The left-handed batter could only score two.

Ashfaq Ahmed and Kamran then added 130-runs for the second wicket before Ashfaq perished in the 28th over. Ashfaq remained the second top-scorer for the side with his brilliant half-century. The right-handed batter scored 71 off 86 balls.

Kamran then put on another valiant partnership with Adil Amin. The duo batted sensibly with Adil scoring a half-century, while Kamran went on to score a terrific century.

Kamran, however, made his way back after amassing his century, he scored 109 off 120 balls with the help of 10 boundaries and three sixes.

Whereas, Adil, who lost his wicket in the 49th over, scored 60 off 58 deliveries, laced with three boundaries and a six.

For CP, Ali Asfand, Rizwan Hussain, and Qasim Akram made one scalp each.

Batting first, CP managed to score 286/9 in the allotted 50 overs at the back of the fifties from Hussain Talat and Qasim.

After opting to bat first, CP had a below-par start to their innings as the side lost their first four wickets with 78 runs on the scoreboard in the 18th over.

The dependent pair of CP – Hussain and Qasim then anchored the innings with an important 108-runs partnership for the fifth wicket and took the score to 187 in the 34th over before Hussain made his way back.

The left-handed batter scored 63 in 71 balls, laced with five boundaries and a six, while Qasim top-scored for the side with 67. The right-handed batter faced 63 deliveries and smashed 10 boundaries in the course of his gritty knock.

Later, all-rounder Saad Nasim also chipped in with his unbeaten 46 in 42 balls, laced with three boundaries and a six.

For KPK, Imran and Sajid led the way with three wickets each, while Imran Khan followed back with two. Sameen Gul, on the other hand, struck out a batter.

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