Multan Sultans v Karachi Kings (Qualifier 1): Who won today's PSL 2020 match?
The Karachi Kings held their nerve to get the better of the Multan Sultans in a tense first Qualifier of the Pakistan Super League (PSL 2020) at Karachi. With 23 needed off the last three overs and five wickets in hand, the match seemed within winnings distance for the Karachi Kings.
However, Imran Tahir dismissed Sherfane Rutherford cheaply while Wayne Parnell was caught short of his crease due to some lazy running. These two incidents brought Multan back into the contest.
A boundary from Imad Wasim off the last ball from Mohammad Ilyas took the match into the Super Over. Sohail Tanvir bowled the Super Over for the Multan Sultans, and while he dismissed Sharjeel Khan and Sherfane Rutherford, he conceded 13 runs.
In response, Mohammad Amir bowled a brilliant Super Over to ensure victory for the Karachi Kings. Despite bowling two wides, he did not concede a single boundary and gave away only nine runs as Ravi Bopara and Rilee Rossouw failed to take him on.
Karachi’s chase of 142 was led by Babar Azam’s 65, however, the team stumbled following his dismissal. Chadwick Walton fell to Tanvir for 2 runs, and the wickets kept falling after that. Amir hit one straight down the throat of deep midwicket to put Karachi in further trouble before a boundary from the last ball kept them in the game.
Maqsood and Iqbal hold Multan to 141 runs
Sent into bat after losing the toss, Multan managed to post a score of only 141 for 7. Waqas Maqsood and Arshad Iqbal bowled brilliantly to keep Multan on the backfoot. While Maqsood finished with figures of 2 for 26, dismissing Adam Lyth and Ravi Bopara, Iqbal ended with figures of 2 for 21.
For Multan, the experienced Ravi Bopara was the team's highest scorer with 40 from 31, but the team never dominated the game as they kept losing wickets. Opener Zeeshan Ashraf contributed 21 while a cameo of 25 not out from 13 from Sohail Tanvir pushed Multan past 140.
Who was the Man of the Match?
Waqas Maqsood was excellent for the Karachi Kings with his two crucial wickets. Imad Wasim also put up a good all-round show, picking up one wicket and smashing an unbeaten 27 from 16 balls.
However, it was Babar Azam who was the Man of the Match for his 65 from 53 balls. Azam hit five fours and two sixes to keep the Karachi Kings in the hunt, even as others floundered.