Quetta Gladiators owner praises Karachi Whites

Side claims five-wicket win over Islamabad to win National Regional One Day Cup

KARACHI: Quetta Gladiators owner Nadeem Omar praised the Karachi Whites team that beat Islamabad by five wickets to become the champions of the National Regional One Day Cup on Sunday, while also announcing a cash prize of Rs500,000 for the winners.

Omar, who also heads the Omar Associates cricketing department and the Pakistan Cricket Club, added that he has been very impressed by the manner in which Karachi chased down a daunting target of 349.

“I’m very pleased to see Karachi as champions of the National Regional One Day Cup," said Omar. "It was a delight to watch the young Danish Aziz play such a whirlwind innings alongside the more senior Fawad Alam, who just can’t stop scoring."

He added: “At one point, the match was almost over but the way Aziz and Alam played was a treat to watch. Alam did what he does best, holding the innings together, while Aziz played some extravagant shots and was unfazed by the occasion and the situation.”

Omar also praised the captaincy of Asad Shafiq, who is part of the Quetta Gladiators camp, in the event and also expressed delight at the improvements in his batting. “I would like to appreciate Karachi Whites captain Shafiq because he was very good as a captain and even better as a batsman,” he said. “He is scoring heavily in List A matches and has certainly upped his game.”

Several of Quetta’s players impressed in the tournament and Omar was understandably delighted to see them in such a rich vein of form right before the Pakistan Super League.

“It’s good for Quetta that Asad is performing well,” he said. “Saud Shakil, Saad Ali, Umar Amin, Anwar Ali, Rahat Ali and Mir Hamza are all performing really well as well.”