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DHARAMSALA (India), Sept 27: Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Asif was sidelined with back trouble as India's Uttar Pradesh reached 268 for seven against Sialkot on the opening day of the four-day Nissar Trophy game between the national champions.
Asif said the injury was minor and he was being cautious ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy starting in India next month.
Ranji Trophy champions Uttar Pradesh also suffered a blow before the toss when India batsman and their captain Mohammad Kaif withdrew due to fever.
Asif, 23, struck two early blows for Pakistan's Quaid-i-Azam Trophy winners, including that of India one-day batsman and stand-in UP skipper Suresh Raina (5), before he was forced off the pitch after bowling just 6.4 overs.
Uttar Pradesh were reduced to 53 for four. But Ravikant Shukla (54), Rizwan Shamshad, who is still at the crease with 60, and Piyush Chawla (49) lifted their team out of trouble.
Scoreboard
UTTAR PRADESH (1st Innings):
R.P. Srivastava b Tahir 16
S.K. Shukla lbw b Asif 1
S.K. Raina c Shoaib b Asif 5
Ravikant Shukla c Shahzad b Sarfraz 54
P. Kumar c and b Sarfraz 2
Jyoti P. Yadav c Imran b A. Rehman 15
R. Shamshad not out 60
Piyush Chawla c Tahir b Shahid 49
Amir Khan not out 23
EXTRAS (B-13, LB-22, W-8, NB-1) 44
TOTAL (for seven wkts, 90 overs) 269
FALL OF WKTS: 1-13, 2-23, 3-50, 4-53, 5-109, 6-121, 7-200.
TO BAT: R.P. Singh, S.J. Srivastava.
BOWLING (to-date): Mohammad Asif 6.4-2-8-2; Sarfraz Ahmed 26-7-48-2; Tahir Mughal 7.2-1-27-1 (1w); Shahid Yousuf 16-2-57-1 (5nb); Abdur Rehman 24-5-65-1; Shoaib Malik 9-1-19-0 (1nb); Shahzad Malik 1-0-9-0 (2nb).
SIALKOT: Imran Nazir, Shoaib Malik, Shahid Yousuf, Hafiz Majid Jahangir, Shahzad Malik, Mansoor Amjad, Hafiz Khalid, Abdur Rehman, Tahir Mughal, Sarfraz Ahmed, Mohammad Asif.
UMPIRES: A.Y. Gokhale and F. Gomes.
TV UMPIRE: H.S. Sekhon.—Agencies
