MIT Solutions moved to within three wickets of winning the President’s Trophy Grade-I title after reducing State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to 165-7 in their pursuit of a 237-run target on the third day at Bagh-e-Jinnah Ground on Thursday.
State Bank, who need another 72 runs to win, face a difficult final day with Mubasir Khan unbeaten on 17 and Mohammad Abbas on five.
Hasan Raza top-scored for SBP with 73 off 136 balls, hitting eight fours, but his dismissal at 139-6 left the chase in danger. Khalid Usman claimed two wickets, including Hasan and Shahid Aziz, while Salman Aslam and Muhammad Ismail took one apiece.
SBP lost wickets at regular intervals after Abdullah Fazal made 25 and Kamran Ghulam contributed 16. Rameez Aziz managed only one before being caught, while wicketkeeper Ali Shan was run out for five.
Khalid Usman further dented the chase by dismissing Shahid Aziz for four, leaving SBP seven down at 147. Mubasir and Abbas then added an unbeaten stand to take the total to 165 at stumps.
MIT Solutions had built their position through a strong second innings on Wednesday, reaching 263-7 after being dismissed for just 112 in their first innings. Abuzar Tariq led the recovery with a patient 85 from 148 balls, including four fours and four sixes.
Aamer Jamal only managed to add 10 to his overnight score, before getting dismissed by Mohammad Abbas. He made 55.
While Salman Khan made 28 and Atiq-ur-Rehman scored 23. MIT had conceded a 60-run first-innings lead after SBP were bowled out for 172.
Jamal was the standout bowler in State Bank’s first innings, taking 7-32 in 14 overs to give MIT a chance to recover from their poor start.
MIT Solutions now need three more wickets to seal the trophy, while SBP must find 72 runs with only three wickets remaining to pull off a remarkable victory.
