Uncapped spinner Ahmed Safi Abdullah bagged an economical five-for in a marathon spell in his 50th first-class match during Quaid-e-Azam Trophy round nine.
Faisalabad posted 312 in their first innings at the Murghzar Cricket Ground in Islamabad, anchored by a 177-ball 148 from Awais Zafar and supporting half-centuries from Hasan Raza and Raees Ahmed. In reply, Bahawalpur were dismissed for 188. Ahmed Safi Abdullah, featuring in his 50th first-class match, led the bowling effort with a marathon 31-over spell – including 17 maidens – that yielded five wickets for 36 runs at just over a run an over.
That was Abdullah’s fourth five-wicket haul in first-class cricket; his previous one was an 8 for 62 against Multan in September 2023, which remains his best career figures. His other two five-fors – 5 for 106 and 6 for 132 – came for Central Punjab against Northern in 2020 and 2022, respectively.
Match 42, Faisalabad vs Bahawalpur
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Abdullah received support from Hasan Raza, who took 3 for 53, and Khurram Shahzad, who finished with 2 for 33. For Bahawalpur, the majority of the runs came from No. 3 batter Mohammad Ammar, who compiled a 214-ball 66, hitting four fours and a six.
Also read: Pakistan Test opener scores 181 in Quaid-e-Azam Trophy
Who is Ahmed Safi Abdullah?
Born in Faisalabad, Abdullah began his career representing the city in age-group cricket from 2011. In just his third appearance, he took 5 for 32 against Quetta Under-16s. He made his first-class debut in 2014 for Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited, immediately making an impact with returns of 4 for 41 and 2 for 33 against United Bank Limited. He later represented Faisalabad in 2017, Islamabad in 2018, and Central Punjab across 2020 and 2022 before returning to Faisalabad in 2023.
Abdullah entered the current fixture with 149 first-class wickets at 28.41. In List A cricket, he has 11 wickets at 58.27 with an economy of 5.58, while in T20s he has 11 wickets from 11 matches at 24.36 and an economy of 7.88.
He also turned out for Islamabad United in three PSL matches in 2020. Additionally, he was part of the Pakistan Shaheens’ tour of Sri Lanka in 2021-22, where he picked up 1 for 11 and 1 for 88 in the only four-day match he played.
Image credit: PCB
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