[Watch] Mohammad Rizwan and Usama Mir showcase football skills to save boundary in PSL 2024 clash
Multan Sultans' teammates Mohammad Rizwan and Usama Mir displayed their football skills to prevent a boundary in the PSL 2024 clash against Islamabad United in Multan on February 20.
The moment transpired in the first ball of the 11th over of the Islamabad innings after they were asked to bat first. Jordan Cox swung across the line and skied a full delivery from Olly Stone behind the wicket towards the fine-leg boundary.
However, the fine-leg fielder overran, and the ball was heading towards the boundary. Meanwhile, Rizwan sprinted from his wicket-keeping position and dived to kick the delivery away from the boundary.
The ball still could have touched the boundary rope, but Mir ran in from the third-man region and used his footwork to save the boundary. The duo saved two runs for the side as the batters ran only a couple.
Here is the video of the brilliant piece of fielding:
The fielding effort summed up the Multan Sultans' effort and energy throughout the game as they restricted Islamabad to 144 in their 20 overs. In reply, the home side stuttered before crossing the finish line by five wickets with a ball to spare.
"We have good balance in our squad" - Mohammad Rizwan
Multan Sultans skipper Mohammad Rizwan was pleased with the side winning its second consecutive game to kickstart their PSL 2024 campaign. The 31-year-old led from the front, scoring a crucial 43 off 33 deliveries, and added a match-defining stand of 71 with top-scorer Reeza Hendricks (58 off 46).
At the post-match presentation after the win, Rizwan said:
"The way we started in the chase, we thought it would be a tough chase, but we had wickets in hand. We have good balance in our squad. Our batters are in good form as well. Almost all the batters got runs thus far and that is always a good sign moving forward. I don't really focus too much on strengths and weaknesses, would like to treat it as one game at a time."
Multan finished second in the last two PSL seasons, losing in the final to Lahore Qalandars on both occasions. They defeated the Karachi Kings by 55 runs in their season opener before the thrilling victory against Islamabad.
In a quick turnaround, Multan will face Lahore in a repeat of the previous two PSL finals in their next outing on February 21.
Lahore has surprisingly struggled thus far, losing both their games against Islamabad United and Quetta Gladiators.