Markhors defeat Dolphins by 92 runs, record third consecutive victory

Markhors record their third consecutive victory of the Champions One-Day Cup as they defeat the Dolphins by 92 runs in the tournament's sixth game at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad on Wednesday. 

The Dolphins were bundled out by Mohammad Rizwan and Co for 192 runs while chasing a 285-run target. 

The Markhors had registered 284 runs with a loss of nine wickets at the scoreboard with a century from Kamran Ghulam and notable runs from their skipper. 

After losing two early wickets, including Bismillah Khan for a duck and Mohammad Faizan for just 1, Ghulam steadied the innings with a superb knock of 113 off 110 balls, including 12 fours and 3 sixes, before being dismissed by Sameen Gul.

Skipper Rizwan added 51 off 67 deliveries, while Salman Agha contributed 49 off 47.

Despite a few late wickets, the tailenders added crucial runs, with Zahid Mahmood remaining unbeaten on 15 and Akif Javed smashing 6 off the final ball of the innings.

Faheem Ashraf was the standout bowler for Dolphins, claiming 4 wickets for 43 runs, including key dismissals of Iftikhar Ahmed, Abdul Samad, and Mohammad Imran. Mir Hamza bagged two wickets.

In the chase, Sahibzada Farhan provided a steady start, scoring 24 runs off 35 balls, including three boundaries but he could not convert big.

However, his opening partner, Muhammad Hurraira, struggled and was dismissed for a duck after facing 12 balls, caught behind by Bismillah Khan off the bowling of Akif Javed, leaving the team at 12-1.

The top order faced further setbacks as Muhammad Akhlaq, the wicketkeeper-batter, managed just 1 run from 2 balls before he, too.

Captain Saud Shakeel contributed a valuable 41 runs from 56 balls with three boundaries, stabilising the innings after early losses.

He was eventually caught by Akif Javed off Salman, leaving the team at 99-5. Qasim Akram also showed some resistance with 13 runs from 22 balls before being bowled by Salman, who proved effective in breaking partnerships.

The middle-order effort was boosted by Asif Ali, who played an attacking knock of 50 from 43 balls, striking three boundaries and three sixes at a strike rate of 116.27.

His partnership brought some momentum, but he was eventually dismissed.

Faheem Ashraf added 15 runs from 28 balls but was dismissed lbw by Mohammad Imran, as the team struggled to build a solid partnership as Dolphins were bowled out for 192 in 43.5 overs.

Imran and Salman shared three wickets each for Dolphins.

Playing XIs

Dolphins: Sahibzada Farhan, Muhammad Hurraira, Muhammad Akhlaq (wk), Saud Shakeel (c), Qasim Akram, Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Sameen Gul, Sufiyan Muqeem, Usman Qadir, Mir Hamza

Markhors: Bismillah Khan, Mohammad Faizan, Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Rizwan (c) (WJ), Salman Agha, Iftikhar Ahmed, Abdul Samad, Mohammad Imran, Zahid Mahmood, Naseem Shah, Akif Javed