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PSL 2021 | LHQ vs KRK: Noor Ahmad, Amir nullify fighting Tim David and Faulkner to keep Karachi alive

It was supposed to be the biggest match of the Abu Dhabi leg’s group stage as it was between the two biggest cities of Pakistan also the two biggest sporting rivals. Although Karachi in the ned won it by seven runs and seven runs is a huge margin in T20 cricket, but it was not at all as easy as it might seem from the end result. 

Lahore vs Karachi could be compared to the usual Delhi vs Mumbai affair in IPL terms or Liverpool vs Manchester in Football terms. The match turned out to be exactly as was expected a see-saw battle that went on fr the entire 40 overs of the game, with no team seeming to have full control at any point in time. 

Chasing a total of 177, the Qalandars got off to a flyer aggregating 34 runs in the first three overs. From the fourth over onwards the Kings started pulling things back as Mohammad Amir bowled a brilliant over, conceding just three runs. In the very next over, Mohammad Ilyas struck and got the Qlanadars skipper Sohail Akhtar out for 21. From there on, Imad Wasim’s men starting tightening the noose on the Qalandars as left-arm spin was introduced from all ends. 

Afghanistan’s teen sensation Noor Ahmad was hard to read even for experienced campaigners like Mohammad Hafeez. He was the pick of the bowlers for Karachi, striking twice in his four overs and ending with the figures of 2-19. Noor got the wickets of Hafeez and Ben Dunk even as the pressure applied by him resulted in two other wickets, Salman Agha getting run out and Fakhar Zaman being bowled by Imad. Ahamd, 16, was adjudged Man of the Match for his efforts. 

At the end of the 14th over, Qalandars were 92/5, needing 85 from six overs with Tim David and James Faulkner at the crease. From there on the game took a complete 360-degree turn as the two Hobart Hurricanes players 58 runs in just 23 balls. But David, trying to crush the game in just one over, hit a loopy slower straight to Danish Aziz at long-off on the last delivery of the 18th over. It was the same over in which he had hit 19 runs already. The game changed once again. 

Needing 27 to win from the last two, Faulkner and new man Rashid Khan were put to test against one of the best death bowler Amir. Going for six on the second delivery of his over, the left-arm pacer pulled things back immensely. So much so that he conceded only one run apart from that six in the other five deliveries to give a 20 run cushion for Ilyas to defend. 

The 22-year-old did defend those 20 runs, getting Faulkner caught at the 3rd delivery and forcing Rashid to go all out as Qalandars needed 18 to win from three balls. He hit a six on the fourth ball and suddenly only two more of those sixes were required. However, it wasn’t going to be, as only four runs game of the last two balls, handling Karachi the much-needed win. 

With this win, the kings have now moved up to 8 points from nine games and are threatening the other three teams, Qalandars, Multan Sultans and Peshawar Zalmi for a place in the Playoffs. 

For Qalandars it was their third loss in a row and skipper Khtar would now be under the pump as the Playoffs qualification hangs by the thread when his team faces Multan Sultans on June 18. “Our batting has been poor after the 6-7 overs. We will sit down and talk about batting. The bowling has been good,” he said at the post-match presentation ceremony. 

Earlier in the night, Imad surprised all by electing to bat first after winning the toss. His decision was validated by Babar Azam and Martin Guptill, who even after a false start by Nasir Jamshed, tailored along and added 88 for the second wicket. But as told earlier the game was a see-saw battle. Even after the foundation being laid, the Kings failed to capitalise, losing four wickets including that of Babar in 23 runs. 

They did not look like crossing the 160 run mark at the end of the 16th over, struggling at 132-5 with two new men Imad and Aziz at the crease. But as had been the nature of the game, just when it seemed like it was heading in one direction, something unusual happened and this time around it was the 44 runs partnership in 24 balls between the Karachi skipper and Aziz, who was making a comeback into the side. While Imad remained unbeaten on 30 from 19, Aziz scored 16 on 10 balls. Babar was the highest scorer with 54 from 44, that when he was dropped thrice. 

Reacting to this much-needed win, Imad praised his bowlers for containing Qalandars even after being 20 runs short in the batting.  “You should peak at the right time. We have one more game to go. If we win it and qualify, you never know,” he added. 

Karachi play their last game here at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, against Quetta Gladiators who are already out of the tournament and hence could be way more dangerous as it would look to oust the Kings as well. To qualify, Karachi must win, it is as simple as that. If Qalandars win their last game and get to 12 points then the Imad Wasim led team would hope that Islamabad defeat Multan Sultans in the last game. However, if Qalandars lose their last game. A win for Karachi would guarantee them a place in the Playoffs.

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PSL 2021: Khawaja hits hundred as Islamabad get over Peshawar in high scoring thriller

Islamabad United vs Peshawar Zalmi was supposed to be a high voltage clash and boy did it turn out to be one at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi! Having conceded 247 in the first innings, anyone would have hardly given Zalmi a chance to come back into this game and come as close as requiring 38 from the last two overs. But they did courtesy some fiery innings by experienced domestic pair of Kamran Akmal and Shoaib Malik and most importantly a threatening cameo by Sherfane Rutherford, who scored 29 off eight balls. Later on, some lusty blows by skipper Wahab Riaz and Iron Man Umaid Asif stretched the chase till the final two overs. However, as the result turned out to be, the team from Peshawar was left ruining conceding so many runs as they lost the game by 15 runs, after scoring only seven in the last over, bowled brilliantly by Akif Javed. By virtue of that loss, the Zalmi ended on 10 points from 10 games in the league and would now have to wait for other games’ results to confirm its birth in the final. Malik top-scored for the black and yellow brigade with 36 balls 68 while Akmal also scored his second fifty of the tournament. For Islamabad, left haded pacer Javed was most successful, picking three wickets for 43 runs to go along with his last over heroics. Zafar Gohar was the most expensive bowler going for 64 runs in his four overs. Reacting to the loss, Zalmi skipper Riaz said, “We are disappointed, but this was also our first-day game here in the second leg, so we will try to do better next time and come back stronger.” Earlier in the day, after winning the toss, Zalmi invited Usman Khawaja’s team to bat first. Khawaja who was leading the team in Shadab Khan’s absence as the latter was rested, grabbed the opportunity with both hands, scoring his maiden PSL fifty and then going on to convert it into a maiden hundred. This was also the first time in PSL’s history that a captain scored a century in a match. On the back of his 56 balls 105 and some clean hitting by the likes of Asif Ali, Brandon Kings and Colin Munro, United achieved the highest total in PSL history. Their 247-2 was eight runs more than their own total of 238 achieved by them during the 2019 PSL. For Zalmi, almost every bowler was expensive except for Shoiab Malik who picked a wicket after conceding just 14 runs in his two overs. Much like Wahab, Khawaja too conceded that bowlers were not on money and that they were one bowler short. “It was a great team effort considering there were several players not playing. I won't be taking anything away from the bowlers considering the main bowlers were resting,” he said. With this win, the United have now reached 14 points winning seven of their nine games and with one to go, they would look to end on a high. In their last game, United will take on Multan Sultans in the last game of the league stage on June 19.

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PSL 2021: Usman Khawaja century helps Islamabad post highest ever total in PSL history

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PSL 2021 Preview: 'Selfie' Sultans look to continue form as they face Lahore

Multan Sultans were on a roll when they played Quetta Gladiators on Wednesday. First opener Shan Masood hammered the Quetta Gladiators all around the park to notch up a 42-ball 73 and helped his side put up 183/5 in 20 overs. Later, the bowlers especially Imran Tahir ripped through the Gladiators batting unit and bundled them out for 73 to win the match by 110 runs. The win was a crucial one for Sultans as they got some important points but the margin of this victory has helped them to better their net run-rate. The Sultans would now be up against Lahore Qalandars on Friday in Abu Dhabi. In the first 8 matches that Qalandars played, they etched victory in five of them and had 10 points under their belt. They have balanced line up which can be lethal on the given day. Match Details Match: Multan Sultans vs Lahore Qalandars Date and Time: 18th June – 9:30 PM IST Telecast: Sony Sports Network Pitch Report The tracks in Abu Dhabi have something on offer for the spinners for sure. In the match between Sultans and Gladiator, Imran Tahir took good advantage of the conditions and helped his side win the match comprehensively. But the dew can also play a major role in assisting the team who bats second. So, if you win the toss, bowl first. Team News Multan Sultans: Multan Sultans would be riding high on their performance against the Quetta Gladiators. The Mohammad Rizcan-led side was exceptionally good with their batting, bowling and fielding and would be looking to continue to do what they did in the last game. The kind of performance that Imran Tahir unleashed against Sarfaraz Ahmed’s side is something that has added strength to the team. The Multan team just needs to carry that form forward now. Multan would be without the services of Shimron Hetmyer who is a part of the West Indies squad for the T20I series against South Africa at home. Lahore Qalandars: Lahore Qalandars on the other side, have a pretty balanced side. The likes of Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Ben Dunk make a brilliant batting line up while the presence of James Faulkner, Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf form an incredible bowling unit. Zaman who has shown his talent at the highest level can give the side a brisk start while Hafeez can take up the responsibility to stick around and score runs quickly in the later stages of the innings. Ben Dunk would have the responsibility to go after the bowlers if he is coming out to bat in the death overs. It would be an interesting contest to see how the two spinners fare in this clash. Probable XI Multan Sultans: Shan Masood, Mohammad Rizwan(c&wk), Sohaib Maqsood, Rille Rossouw, Charles, Khushdil Shah, Sohail Tanvir, Blessing Muzarabani, Shahnawaz Dhani, Imran Khan, Imran Tahir. Lahore Qalandars: Fakhar Zaman, Sohail Akhtar(c), Zeeshan Sharaf, Mohammad Hafeez, Ben Dunk, Tim David, Rashid Khan, Ahmed Daniyal, James Faulkner, Shaheen Afridi, Harish Rauf. Fantasy XI Fakhar Zaman, Shan Masood, Rizwan, Rille Rossouw, Charles, Mohammad Hafeez, Ben Dunk, Tim David, Rashid Khan (VC), James Faulkner (C), Shaheen Afridi