ISLAMABAD - Waqt TV annexed the Nawa-i-Waqt Group 3-day Sports Gala, Rawalpindi-Islamabad Chapter, cricket category title after routing Nawa-i-Waqt in the final here at the Bhutto Cricket ground on Saturday.

MD Nawa-i-Waqt Group Rameeza Majid Nizami had to grace the concluding ceremony as chief guest but due to her important commitments, she could not reach the spot, but she extended her best wishes for the organising committee and felicitated the winning teams and players. In her absence, The Nation Resident Editor Islamabad/Peshawar Salman Masood graced the final as chief guest. Nawa-i-Waqt Resident Editor Javed Siddeeq, while Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Governing Board member Shakil Shaikh, Rawalpindi Region head coach Sabih Azhar, OGDCL Sports Board vice president Ch Ajmal Sabir, Additional Director CDA Kamran Ch, Sh Azhar Hussain, Wasif Bajwa were the guests of honour.

Nawa-i-Waqt Group Manager HR Shafeeq Sultan, Waqt TV senior anchor Mattiullah Jan, Aleena Shigri, Qaiser Nadeem, organising committee chairman Azhar Mehmood, members Mohsin Ali, Faheem Anwar Khan, Imran Haider, business manager Usman Masood, manager marketing Mahfooz Anjum, Jahanzaib of MadMob. This great festivity was organised by Nawa-i-Waqt Group HR Department in collaboration with sponsors MadMob Advertising, Air Link, Revolution Media and Coca Cola.

A total of five teams including The Nation, Nawa-i-Waqt, Waqt TV-A, Waqt TV-B and Islamabad United participated in the cricket category of the gala. In the first match of the day, The Nation defeated Waqt TV-B by 28 runs. Batting first, The Nation hammered massive 105-2 on the board in 5 overs. Opener Mohsin Ali amused the spectators with his swashbuckling batting and thwarted unbeaten 59 off 17 balls with the help of 4 fours and 7 massive sixes. Musaadaq also batted well for his 39 runs. Chasing the target, Waqt TV-B could only score 77-4 in the allotted overs. Jameel scored 15. Mohsin Ali took 1-6.

In the second match, Nawa-i-Waqt defeated Waqt TV-A by 10 runs in an interesting encounter. Nawa-i-Waqt, batting first, gathered 66-6 in the allotted overs with Muneer hitting 23. Waqat TV-A could not reply strongly and could score only 56.

In the first semi-final, Nawa-i-Waqt defeated Islamabad United by 12 runs, as they first scored 65-3 and in reply, Islamabad United could score 54-6 and failed to book berth in the final. The second semi-final saw Waqat TV-A edging out The Nation by 6 wickets. The Nation, batting first, could score only 45-2 in the allotted over with only Musaddaq (20) batting well for them. Waqt TV-A, in reply, reached home safely in 4.1 overs losing 4 wickets. Imran hit 16 runs. Mohsin Ali took 2-6. In the grand final, Nawa-i-Waqt won the toss and could score only 45-5 against Waqt TV-A, who easily chased down the target in 2.4 overs. Asim was top scorer with 20 runs.

In the end, Mohsin Ali was given the ‘best entertainer shield’, while shields and gifts were also distributed among the dignitaries and players. Nawa-i-Waqt dedicated press worker Shahabuddin was also given shield by Salman Masood and Javed Siddeeq, while Ch Ajmal Sabir distributed shields among the dignitaries. The event was concluded with Nawa-i-Waqt Group Manager HR Shafeeq Sultan thanking the sponsors, MD and all others, who were involved in making the event a success.

Speaking about the sports gala after its conclusion, The Nation Resident Editor Islamabad/Peshawar Salman Masood termed the gala a healthy and useful activity for Nawa-i-Waqt Group employees. “All the journalists enjoyed this festivity a lot and I hope the group will continue organising such vigorous activities on regular basis to provide its employees a platform to exhibit their prowess and make moments of their lives remarkable by featuring and winning various events. I would also like to appreciate the efforts of organising committee for holding the gala in a smooth and befitting manner.”

Nawa-i-Waqt Islamabad Resident Editor Javed Siddeeq paid rich tribute to Group MD Rameeza Majid Nizami and congratulated all the participating teams and especially champions Waqt TV-A. “I hope such events will be held in future too, as there is a dire need to provide more opportunities to staff in sporting fields.”

PCB official Shakil Shakih said he had witnessed many events but he was highly impressed the way this event was conducted in a highly professional manner. Paying glowing tributes to Group MD Rameez Majid Nizami, he said: “I had covered the stories of former Nawa-i-Waqt Group MD late Majid Nizami, which was a great honour for me.”

Shakil also appreciated the idea of conducting cricket matches among the Press Clubs of major cities and after going through trials, a national level journalists team would be formed, which would tour different countries and play matches abroad. He also offered his all-out support to Nawa-i-Waqt Group for holding future events.

Ch Ajmal Sabir thanked Nawa-i-Waqt MD and the sports committee for choosing Bhutto Cricket ground for conducting their sports gala cricket matches, saying the availability of most of the cricket grounds in Islamabad were possible due to tireless efforts of Shakil Shakikh, who requested CDA chairman Sh Ansar to provide cricket grounds to cricket clubs of the city.