Azam Khan Wreaks Havoc As Islamabad United Outclass Quetta Gladiators
Azam Khan was awarded Player of the match [Twitter]
Islamabad United's wicket-keeper batter Azam Khan bludgeoned 97 off 42 balls as Islamabad United crushed Quetta Gladiators by 63 runs in the 13th match of the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL 8) at the National Bank Cricket Arena in Karachi on Friday.
Azam Khan smashed a majestic half-century
Shadab Khan surprised everyone after electing to bat first in Karachi. The United posted a massive 220/6 at the back of an astounding 97-run knock by Azam despite a dismal start. The start wasn't ideal for Islamabad as they lost their last match hero Rahmanullah Gurbaz cheaply. Rassie van der Dussen also departed cheaply as Mohammad Hasnain gave Gladiators an ideal start with two quick wickets.
Colin Munro was looking fluent as ever before he fell for a well-made 38 (22). The team was struggling with four wickets down for 71 runs inside 10 overs. Big-hitting Asif Ali joined Azam Khan in the middle and both power strikers forged a match-turning partnership with an onslaught attack on the Gladiators’ bowlers.
The duo of Azam and Asif added 98 runs in just 45 deliveries to propel Islamabad to 220 in the allotted 20 overs. Azam was the standout batter for his team, scoring 97 off a mere 42 deliveries. His innings were laced with nine boundaries and eight sixes.
Farooqi-Hasan derailed the Gladiators' innings
To get an important win, the Gladiators wanted a solid start from their star opening pair of Martin Guptill and Jason Roy. However, the start was exactly the opposite of what they had hoped. Islamabad's new ball bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi knocked over Martin Guptill with a peach of delivery while Abrar Ahmed accounted for Jason Roy in his very first over.
Will Smeed's brief stay at the crease came to an end when he tried to sweep Abrar's straight delivery. Quetta lost their three wickets for just 26 runs. Seasoned campaigners Mohammad Hafeez and Sarfaraz Ahmed added 45 runs in the next four overs to give Quetta some hope and took their team to 71 in seven overs. The former was the aggressor in the innings while the latter failed to get his timing right.
In the 11th over, the 69-run partnership came to an end when Farooqi dismissed Hafeez for 48 runs. Following Hafeez’s departure, Sarfaraz shared a 32-run stand with Iftikhar Ahmed before the former got out in the 16th over for 41. Iftikhar Ahmed fought hard to keep his team in the game but in the end, it was a mountain too steep to climb. Eventually, the Gladiators were bowled out for 157.
Brief Scores:
Islamabad United: 220/6 (20 overs)
Azam Khan 97 (42), Asif Ali 42 (24)
Odean Smith 2/41 (4), Mohammad Hasnain 2/52 (4)
Quetta Gladiators: 157/10 (19.1 overs)
Mohammad Hafeez 48 (26), Sarfaraz Ahmed 41 (36)
Fazalhaq Farooqi 3/38 (3.1), Hasan Ali 3/39 (4)
Match Result: Islamabad United won by 64 runs.
 "Vaibhav Tripathi")
