Raza steers Lions to Techaccess 'A' title

Abu Dhabi - Nasir Aziz and Asif Mumtaz ran through the middle and lower order with five wickets between them

Hassan Raza racked up 76 as Alubond Tigers tamed Danube Lions by three wickets to win the Techaccess 'A' division final at Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night.
"I had a good season so far and tonight was a good knock," Raza, the man of the match, said. "This is a big achievement for me."
After electing to bat first, Lions failed to last 50 overs and could muster up 192 runs.
Openers Gulraiz Sadaf and Asif Iqbal fell cheaply and it was only a gritty partnership between Shaiman Anwar (48) and Tarindu Mendis (49) that revived hopes for the Lions.
Bowlers Nasir Aziz and Asif Mumtaz ran through the middle and lower order with five wickets between them. In the 26th over, Anwar failed to tackle a Nasir Aziz gem. Aziz soon packed off Adnan Mufti with score at 112 for five wickets. Spinner Mumtaz joined the party and send back threatening Sami Ullah Younas (31). Mumtaz followed it up with Mendis scalp, who fell for 49. And a collapse thereafter saw Lions being bundled up inside 47 overs.
While chasing, Sami Naizi set the tone with first over scalp of Shahid Sadique. When Ghulam Shabbir too fell cheaply, Lions were on top with just 36 runs on board by the end of ninth over.
Then Raza joined forces with Rohan Mustafa and later Amjad Gul to push the scoring to 80 for four by the 16th over.
With only five more runs added, Amir Hayat accounted for skipper Aziz's wicket and Lions were seeing light again.
Raza then brought in all his experience and calmed nerves through a crucial partnership with Umair Ali (23).
When Asif Iqbal had Ali bowled with 67 runs to victory, Lions were in with a real chance. But Raza kept his cool and played a sheet anchor role. He spanked six boundaries and a six, and when the 34-year-old brought up his half-century, Tigers were breathing easy again in what was a game of fluctuating fortunes.
Raza played sensible cricket with tail ender Asif Mumtaz and rotated strikes to ease tension. Lions were hunting desperately and had set an attacking field but Raza steered his team home with more than 11 overs to spare. It was a low-scoring see-saw game in which Raza's innings was the difference.
ashwani@khaleejtimes.com