Azhar, Umar hit centuries as Central Punjab take big lead.

Byline: Khalid H. Khan

KARACHI -- The element of fight seemed to have gone out of Northern as Central Punjab rode on contrasting centuries from Azhar Ali and Umar Akmal to build a commanding lead in their First XI final of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy at the National Stadium here on Saturday.

The way this title-decider has moved, it is almost unlikely that the fixture would last its scheduled duration. Central Punjab batsmen - headed by Azhar and Umar - enjoyed a festive second day by extending their overnight score from 87-1 to 466-5 - while piling up 379 runs and maintaining a rapid run-rate of 4.57 from 83 overs that were delivered - giving them a cushion of 212 runs with still three days to go.

The only chance Northern had of clawing back into the contest was a bucketful of quick wickets in the first session. But they managed one and that too due to young Mohammad Musa Khan's intelligence. The speedster, who made a chastening Test debut in Adelaide last month, harried the vastly-experienced Salman Butt into a state of anxiety.

Salman, who had otherwise batted with composure and poise for his 97-ball knock of 74 (13 fours), was fed with several short-pitched deliveries with men stationed in the deep for the possible hook attempt. But the left-hander kept ducking underneath until Musa changed gears and pitched up a very quick one.

The end result was predictable as Salman was going nowhere as his feet movement mattered, while the ball crashed into the stumps. Until that piece of high drama, Salman and Azhar had added 95 for the second wicket in 116 minutes.

Given his sublime form Babar Azam now appears to bat in a trance. And Saturday was no exception as the Central Punjab captain serenely compiled 69 (off 89 balls, nine fours and one six) in 136 minutes during the third-wicket partnership of 125 with the Pakistan Test skipper. A fourth century in last five matches - including three from four Tests - beckons for the prodigiously talented right-hander but Babar also has the tendency of playing loose, and such shot saw him edge left-arm paceman Sadaf Hussain to Zeeshan Malik in the slips.

Umar then arrived to open his account with a straight blow onto the sightscreen off Northern captain Nauman Ali and then simply blossomed with series of outrageous strokes on both sides of the lush-green outfield.

Azhar, in the meantime, wasn't in the mood to squander the chance of reaching his second ton on the trot...

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