Ghani Glass skipper Moeez Ghani's performance in the President's Cup on Friday (December 12) drew the ire of several fans.
Moeez Ghani scores 8 off 47 in President's Cup
In the latest round of fixtures, Ghani Glass took on Sahir Associates at the HPC Oval Ground in Karachi. GG batted first after being sent in, with skipper Moeez Ghani opening with former Pakistan international Sharjeel Khan.
Moeez had a difficult time of things, crawling to seven off 30 balls by the end of the powerplay as Sharjeel reached on 18 off 32. He had contributed seven off 37 by the time Sharjeel fell with the score at 44. His painful knock came to an end at eight off 47 balls in the 16th over, as a leading edge popped up in the air and Muhammad Faiq held onto an easy catch.
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GG, 60-2 at that point, eventually posted 327-7 after Mohsin Riaz scored 141 and Tayyab Tahir hit 65. Moeez's knock ended up looking worse after Sahir Associates gunned down the target in 36.5 overs, courtesy Usman Khan's 159 off 98. The Ghani Glass captain's bowling did not hold up strongly either, as he conceded 34 runs in three wicketless overs.
Match 10, Ghani Glass vs Sahir Associates
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'Obsession with playing top-level cricket makes no sense'
The President's Cup is an inter-departmental List A tournament, with teams representing public and private entities in Pakistan. Moeez is the head of sales for the Ghani Group of Companies, and COO technical of Ghani Ceramics Limited. Ghani Glass, the team, is owned by the Ghani Group headed by Moeez's father, Aitzaz Ghani. This link has often called into question not only Moeez's captaincy status but also his place in the side.
Moeez's performances have done little to oppose the theory that he is, for all intents and purposes, in the team as it is funded by his family. From eight List A matches, he averages 7.9 and strikes at 30.7 (yes, thirty) with the bat and 157 with the ball. In four first-class games, he has a batting average of 9.5 and bowling average of 71.
The prevailing argument in support of his continued inclusion in the Ghani Glass team is the fact that it may be an allowance made for the company that has invested relatively heavily in domestic cricket – financial support without which several other domestic cricketers may not be able to earn a living.
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