Patron’s Trophy: 24 teams to vie it out for top prize

Winner of Grade II event will earn promotion to first-class Quaid-e-Azam Trophy

KARACHI: In a race to secure a spot in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy — Pakistan cricket’s top division, 24 teams will fight for the top prize in the Patron’s Trophy — Pakistan cricket’s Grade II event — when the tournament commences from Thursday.

The second-tier event was scheduled to begin from Tuesday, but due to the law and order situation of the country following the hanging of Mumtaz Qadri, the event was postponed.



The participating teams are divided into four pools and will play five three-day group matches till March 21. The top team from each pool will qualify for the semi-finals, which will be held from March 24, while the four-day final will commence from March 29.

In the last edition of the tournament, Karachi Port Trust (KPT) were promoted to the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Silver league as they defeated Omar Associates in the final thanks to their first-innings lead after the match ended in a draw.



KPT, on the other hand, were relegated to Grade II as they finished last in the pool matches of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Silver league. Other top teams featuring in the tournament are PIA, Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) and State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).

Published in The Express Tribune, March 2^nd, 2016.

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