King Faisal Blues and Super clinch SAIB Tournament crowns

RIYADH — King Faisal Blues and Super Cricket Club clinched the SAIB Cricket Tournament crowns following thrilling wins in their respective leagues here recently. This tournament was sponsored by Saudi Arabian Investment Bank (SAIB) and organized by Riyadh Cricket Association (RCA). In the 40-over Al-Kharj League Tournament final, King Faisal Blues emerged as champions after outplaying Lahore Lions by 24 runs. Lahore Lions won the toss and elected to field first. Openers gave King Faisal Blues a solid foundation with Nasir Abbasi scoring 50 and Ayaz 26. Lahore Lions came back in the game by taking 4 quick wickets, but in the middle order Munawar Shafi’s 83 helped King Faisal recover from the mini-collapse. Munawar was ably supported by Saqib (30), Usman (28), Iftikhar (22) and Khurram (21). King Faisal Blues managed to post 312-9. Nawaz, Muzaffar and Hassan picked up 2 wickets each. In reply, Lahore Lions remained under consistent pressure thanks to some accurate bowling and tight fielding by King Faisal Blues bowlers. Hassan played well for 71. Other notable contributions came from Muzaffar (48), Qamar (36), Mubashar (35), Fahad (31) and Ali (28). Imtiaz Ahmed was the pick of the bowlers with 4-56. Iftikhar Ali bagged 2 wickets and Munawar 1. Man of the Final: Munawar Shafi; Best Batsman: Najeeb Asghar; Best Bowler: Iftikhar Ali; Player of the Tournament: Ramzan Butt. In the T20 Huraymala League final, Super CC defeated KFSH Green by 7 runs. Super posted 175 with Rashid Mirza scoring 41 and Azhar 36. Adnan claimed 4 wickets and Tahir Abbasi 2. KFSH Green, in reply, managed 168. Sharif hit 33, Kauser 29 and Ubaid 22. Nouman bagged 3 wickets and Rashid Mirza 2. Man of the Final: Rashid Mirza; Best Batsman: Shaukat; Best Bowler: Zahid Mahmoud; Player of the Tournament: Shakeel Ahmed. The prize distribution ceremony was held after the finals. Graham Gun, senior vice president of Saudi Investment Bank, was the chief guest on the occasion. Tariq Javed, president of RCA and chairman of EC Saudi Cricket Centre; Kareem Khan, SVP, RCA, attended the ceremony along with other association officials. Tariq Javed thanked the Saudi Investment Bank for sponsoring RCA tournaments. He also thanked Patron-in-Chief Prince General Dr. Abdulaziz Bin Nasser Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud for his continuous support to RCA. Nasir Abbasi, RCA general secretary, anchored the ceremony.