Quaid-e-Azam Cricket League: Haris Khan hits 297 for Salem

On Sunday 2 June in the Quaid-e-Azam Cricket League Premiership, there was an extraordinary club cricket match.

Salem Athletic won the toss and opted to have a bat in their 40-over match against Panyam.

Opener Haris Khan blasted 297 off 113 balls at the top of the order as Panyam tried seven bowlers in a fruitless effort to stem the tide.

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Zarshad Khan hit 110 off 56 balls in the middle order as Salem Athletic racked up 519-7 off 40 overs.

It may end up being the highest individual innings in Yorkshire club cricket this season and likely the highest team score too.

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One small crumb of comfort for Panyam perhaps. I’ve played in this kind of game where the opposition is smacking sixes for fun en route to a huge total.

It is demoralising and one of the first things to go is a fielding side’s cool. Panyam conceded just 16 extras which surprised me.

The batting response was brief; chasing leather for 40 overs is physically exhausting when you’ve gone for that many. Panyam were shot out for 101 off 20.4 overs.

The margin of victory was 418 runs.

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If you’re wondering who Haris Khan is, he also plays for Birkby Rose Hill 1st XI in the Huddersfield Cricket League Championship. Across both teams, he averages 55 after six matches with 333 runs.

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In other words, he has hit 89% of his runs for the season so far in this one innings!

Congratulations to Haris on an extraordinary innings. Feats like this usually divide opinion but the power and concentration to keep going is mighty impressive (he says through gritted teeth, as a bowler 😂).

Panyam 1st XI have had a mixed season in the Quaid-e-Azam Cricket League’s eight-team Premiership, losing two of their first four matches.

After this record-breaking match, the table reads: