Imran Farhat, the aggressive left-handed opening batsman, made an elegant 61 off 74 balls to provide a sound platform for a six-wicket victory for Lahore Tigers over Pakistan Probables in the first of the five-match one-day trial matches, which was played at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.

Imran, the exponent of brilliant cut and pull shots, was in very good touch as he hammered the opening bowling attack of Waqar Younis and Shoaib Akhtar without respite to maintain a run rate of more than six in the opening five overs.

Chasing a modest target of 227 in 50 overs, Lahore Tigers rushed to 69 without loss by the 12th over. But Probables' skipper Moin Khan brought Abdur Razzaq into the attack and the move soon paid off.

After having Saeed Anwar Jnr, who along with Imran opened the batting for the Tigers, caught by Yousuf Youhana, Razzaq also struck in his second over, trapping Imran Abbas plumb in front.

The fall of two quick wickets, however, did not deter Imran Farhat from playing his shots as he raced to his fifty off only 43 balls, with seven fours and one six off Saqlain. He added 56 runs for the third wicket with his captain Bazid Khan (43), before being caught by Moin in the first over of Waqar's new spell.

After being reduced to 169 for four by the 37th over, the fate of the match seemed to hang in balance. A few quick wickets at this stage could have turned the tables on the Tigers.

However, Misbah-ul-Haq (36) and Shoaib Malik (31) ensured with their determined knocks that they did not lose any more wickets. These two played with utmost concentration as they added an unbeaten 60 for the fifth wicket to see their side through.

Earlier, put into bat, Pakistan Probables found themselves in deep trouble after being reduced to 49 for five by the 18th over. Jaffer Nazir, the pace man hailing from Sheikhupura, did the most damage, as he got Imran Nazir and Salim Elahi out with only three runs on the board. Both these batsmen failed to open their accounts.

Saeed Anwar's stay at the crease was also brief. He could only make nine before being bowled by Kashif Raza, who opened the attack for Tigers along with Jaffer.

Inzamam-ul-Haq made 26 with the help of four boundaries before being caught behind by Kamran Akmal off Zahid Saeed with the total on 49. Abdur Razzaq followed at the same total after being run out by a direct throw from Misbah.

Yousuf Youhana, meanwhile, held his ground at the other end. He added a valuable 103 for the sixth wicket along with Shahid Afridi (49) and 63 for the eighth wicket with Saqlain Mushtaq (21) to rescue his side from complete disaster.

He was eventually out in the last over when, going for a big hit, he holed out to Misbah at deep mid-wicket. He made 96 off 129 balls with the help of 12 fours before their innings was wrapped up in the final over for 226.

For Lahore Tigers, Jaffer Nazir bowled excellently, taking two wickets for 25. However, Zahid Saeed, helped by a short burst in the last over in which he got rid of Youhana and Saqlain with consecutive deliveries, turned out to be the most successful bowler with figures of 3 for 44. Kashif Raza and Irfan Fazil took two and one wicket each for, respectively, 35 and 63 runs.

Imran Farhat was declared man of the match, while Shoaib Malik won the prize for the best fielder.

Pakistan Probables will tomorrow face Lahore Panthers in the second match of the series, which will be played under lights at the same venue.

© CricInfo