The Maiwand Champions delivered an impressive all-round performance to defeat the Mahipar Stars by 34 runs in their opening match and get to a winning start in their quest to defend the title in the 9th edition of the e& Ahmad Shah Abdali First Class Tournament 2026, powered by SuperCola.
After being put in to bat first,
the Maiwand Champions have managed to post 211/10 runs on the board in the
first innings, with major contributions coming in from the bats of Rahmanullah
Zadran (84), Ijaz Ahmadzai (51) and Arab Gul Momand (31*). For the Stars, the
skipper Yamin Ahmadzai led the charge with excellent figures of 4/41, whereas
Mohammad Ibrahim (3/56) and Bashir Ahmad (3/68) returned three wickets each.
In the second innings, the skipper
Yamin Ahmadzai (61) scored a half-century, whereas Riaz Hassan (40), Imran Mir
(32), and Yousuf Shah (25) got into the starts, as the Mahipar Stars managed to
score 197/10 runs, conceding a 14-run lead to the opposition. Nijat Masoud (4/52),
Aftab Alam (3/57), Bilal Sami (2/73) and Arab Gul (1/10) shared the wickets
among them for the Champions.
In the third inning of the game,
Maiwand's captain Afsar Zazai scored a half-century with 51 runs, supported by
Rahmanullah Zadran, who contributed 45 runs, and Ijaz Ahmadzai, who added 44
runs. Najibullah Zadran also played a valuable role, scoring 35 runs. As a
result, the team posted a total of 217 runs in their second inning, setting the
Mahipar Stars a target of 232 runs to chase. For the Stars, Yamin Ahmadzai
returned with excellent figures of 4/51, whereas Bashir Ahmad (3/69), Mohammad
Ibrahim (2/48) and Muhibullah Zurmati (1/68) shared the remaining wickets among
them.
While defending the 232-run
target in the fourth innings, Bilal Sami (5/76) and Aftab Alam (2/38) ripped
through Mahipar's middle and tail to defend their 232-run target and
register their first victory in the #AbdaliFCT2026 by 35 runs. Nijat Masoud
(2/57) and Arab Gul Momand (1/26) were the other notable performers with the
ball as they contributed to a perfect finish for the Champions.
Bilal Sami was awarded the Player
of the Match for his outstanding bowling effort of 2/73 & 5/76 in the game.
Both teams will go head-to-head
in the 3rd game of the game at the same venue.