The Pakistan Cricket Board made changes to the rules of the Department cricket tournament, known as the “President Trophy,” kicking off in Karachi.
President’s Trophy: Teams, Squads, and Schedule Revealed
These changes caused quite a stir and drew criticism as they differed from the usual rules observed in first-class cricket worldwide.
One major change limited team innings to 80 overs, unlike the usual unrestricted innings in first-class cricket. In the revised rules, both teams can only play 80 overs in their first innings, while there’s no limit for the second innings.
If a team scores 350 runs or more, they get a bonus point, and the bowling side earns a bonus point by dismissing the opponent within 80 overs.
An interesting twist in the new rules is that if the batting team’s captain declares the innings before completing 80 overs, the bowling side gets a bonus point.
Former test cricketer and commentator Bazid Khan openly criticized these alterations in first-class cricket rules.
Meanwhile, on the opening day of the President Trophy, both State Bank and SNGPL earned bonus points for their performances against PTV and Ghani Glass, respectively.
At the SBP sports complex, PTV got all out for 66 runs, with State Bank’s Mohammad Abbas taking 6 wickets, giving away only 19 runs in 11 overs. In reply, State Bank finished day one at 201 for 1, with opener Zain Abbas scoring an unbeaten century (109) and Umar Amin at 69 not out.
State Bank secured 4 bonus points on day one, 1 for bowling out the opponent and 3 for taking the first innings lead. They have a chance to earn an extra bonus point as they continue batting on Sunday.
At the National Bank Stadium, SNGPL scored 371 runs in 80 overs for the loss of 7 wickets, gaining a batting bonus point. Abid Ali scored 90, Asad Shafiq contributed 81, Sahibzada Farhan scored 67, and Omair Bin Yousaf added 56 runs, while Mohammad Rameez of Ghani Glass claimed 6 wickets.
At the UBL sports complex, despite centuries from Iftikhar Ahmed and Mohammad Saleem for WAPDA, the team couldn’t secure a bonus point. WAPDA managed 322 runs for the loss of 6 wickets in 80 overs, with Iftekhar Ahmed scoring 155 off 180 and Mohammad Saleem adding 117.
