5 records that were broken during the recent historic PSL match between Multan Sultan vs Quetta Gladiators
In an incredibly high-scoring contest of PSL 2023, the Multan Sultans (MS) defeated Quetta Gladiators (QTG) by nine runs. It was Match 28 of the ongoing tournament and was played in Rawalpindi, on Saturday, March 11.
With the win, Multan have finished their league-round campaign on a high note and have qualified for the playoffs.
After being put in to bat first, the Multan openers, Usman Khan and Mohammad Rizwan, set the stage on fire when they mustered 157 runs in just 10 overs.
While Rizwan's half-century went unnoticed, Usman's wondrous 43-ball 120 wreaked havoc on Quetta. Along with lower-order contributions from Tim David (43* off 25), Multan registered a record first-innings total of 263/3 in their 20 overs.
It was always going to be an improbable task for Quetta to chase down the target. However, the nature of the pitch was such that stroke-making was all too easy for the batters in Rawalpindi.
In their hunt for 264, QTG managed to get as far as 253 and lost the game by a slim margin of just nine runs. While Iftikhar Ahmed scored a brilliant half-century, Omair Yousuf smashed a 36-ball 67 as well.
For Multan, Abbas Afridi took a hat-trick en route to a fabulous five-wicket haul in his four overs. The right-armer was also adjudged the Player of the Match for his heroic bowling efforts on a punishing track.
The high-octane PSL match also shattered numerous records. Here is a compilation of five such records that were broken during the encounter between the Multan Sultans and Quetta Gladiators.
#1 Most runs in the first 10 overs of an innings of a T20 game by a batter
Right from the first over, MS opener Usman Khan initiated an onslaught on the QTG bowlers. He made full use of the powerplay and scored 66 runs himself inside the first six overs itself.
By the end of the 10th over, his individual score read - 120 off 42 balls. This is the most a batter has scored after 10 overs of a T20 innings. He went past Chris Gayle's record. The West Indian batsman had scored 105 runs at the halfway mark in an IPL game against Pune Warriors India (PWI) in 2013.
#2 Most sixes in a T20 match in Pakistan
It was an exhibition of lusty blows in Rawalpindi on Saturday. Batters from both camps enjoyed batting at the ground and a total of 33 sixes were hit in the entertaining fixture. While Multan batters hit 17 sixes, Quetta managed 16 in total.
This is the most number of sixes hit in a T20 game in Pakistan. Interestingly, the previous record was set 24 hours prior to the game, in Match 27 of the PSL 2023. That game saw 32 sixes being hit between the Multan Sultan and Peshawar Zalmi.
#3 Most expensive spell in a PSL match
While it was a day to forget for almost every bowler, Qais Ahmed, in particular, was on the receiving end of some fierce striking.
The wrist-spinner, who came into the Quetta side for this game, had his worst day as a T20 bowler and leaked 77 runs in his quota of four overs. Thus, the Afghan tweaker became the bowler with worst figures in a PSL game.
Qais also gave away as many as nine sixes off his bowling, which is also now a record for the most number of sixes by a bowler in a T20 match.
#4 Fastest PSL century by a batter
The star of the night, Usman Khan, etched his name into the history books when he recorded his maiden century for Multan.
Usman needed just 36 balls to reach the three-figure mark and become the player with the fastest century in PSL. He went past teammate Rilee Rossouw’s record, which was a 41-ball hundred against Peshawar Zalmi at the same venue on Friday.
#5 Most aggregate runs in a T20 match
The run-fest in Rawalpindi on Saturday witnessed a world record being set for amassing the highest match aggregate ever in a T20 game.
Multan and Quetta totalled 515 runs in a match where the former eked out a mere nine-run win despite posting 262 for three - the highest total ever in the PSL.
The teams went past the 501-run mark set by the Titans and Knights in a CSA T20 Challenge match in South Africa in October 2022.