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Karachi Whites qualified for the final of the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy when they overwhelmed Faisalabad by nine wicket at the National Stadium Friday.

The victory took Karachi Whites to 63 points with one match against Sargodha in hand. Gujranwala, have 51 points from seven matches but stand no chance of reaching the final even if they secure a maximum of 12 points against Faisalabad and Karachi lose to Sargodha. And it is because Karachi beat Gujranwala by 121 runs in a fourth round action.

Karachi's march to the final was made easier when Faisalabad's prolific run-getters Ijaz Ahmad Junior and Fida Husain couldn't bat after injuring themselves on the second day. Had the two been available to bat, Faisalabad might have held Karachi to a draw to leave the last round action more thrilling and interesting.

Faisalabad, trailing by 250 runs on first innings and resuming this morning at 141 for three, were dismissed for 290 half an hour after lunch. That left Karachi a modest victory target of 41 in a minimum of 31 overs which they achieved in 35 balls.

Karachi paceman Tanvir Ahmed was once again the wrecker-in-chief when they captured four wickets for 94 runs from 29.3 overs. He was quick and accurate to be well rewarded for his hardwork.

Faisalabad's fightback was led by wicketkeeper/batsman Salman Ahmad who started the day at 11 and returned undefeated on 71 off 165 balls. His innings was studded with 12 hits to the fence.

Sohail Nazir, who was 36 overnight, added just eight runs before a rearguard action by Nadeem Afzal (23), Aqeel Ahmad (20) and Nadeem Ashraf (20) took Faisalabad to the eventual score of 290.

© Dawn