A brilliant 70 off 47 balls from James Vince and a fantastic bowling spell of 3 wickets for 27 runs from Hasan Ali propelled the Karachi Kings to a comfortable 56-run victory over the Quetta Gladiators in the eighth match of PSL X at the Karachi stadium on Friday.
Gladiators’ Innings
Chasing a target of 176 runs, the Gladiators’ batting lineup struggled against the Kings’ bowlers and were restricted to just 119 runs for the loss of 9 wickets in their 20 overs.
Interestingly, despite the collapse, Gladiators captain and opener Saud Shakeel remained unbeaten on 33 off 40 balls. Mohammad Amir was the next highest scorer for the Gladiators, hitting a quick 30 off just 16 deliveries, including two boundaries and three sixes.
However, the rest of the Gladiators’ batting order failed to offer much resistance. Finn Allen (6), Hasan Nawaz (1), Kusal Mendis (12), Khawaja Nafay (1), Rilee Rossouw (0), Faheem Ashraf (3), Sean Abbott (3), and Abrar Ahmed (5) all fell cheaply.
Ali Majid remained not out on 9 off 8 balls at the end of the innings.
For the Kings, Hasan Ali was the standout bowler, taking an impressive three wickets. Mohammad Nabi (2 wickets for 7 runs) and Abbas Afridi (2 wickets for 9 runs) provided excellent support, each picking up two wickets. Aamer Jamal (1-10) and Mir Hamza (1-31) also chipped in with a wicket apiece, while Khushdil Shah (0-28) went wicketless.
Kings’ Innings
Earlier in the evening, after winning the toss and choosing to bat first, the Kings got off to a flying start thanks to their captain David Warner (31) and Tim Seifert, who put together a quickfire opening partnership. However, their momentum was halted when Abrar Ahmed broke the partnership.
The Kings then experienced a mini-collapse, losing four wickets for just 91 runs. But it was James Vince who once again steadied the ship and played a magnificent innings, scoring a blistering 70 off just 47 balls, which included six boundaries and one six.
Unfortunately for the Kings, Muhammad Riazullah (6), Khushdil Shah (1), Irfan Khan (17), and Mohammad Nabi (18) couldn’t provide much support with the bat.
Aamer Jamal remained unbeaten on 1 off 2 balls at the end of their innings.
For the Gladiators, Ali Majid (2 wickets for 29 runs) and Mohammad Amir (2 wickets for 42 runs) were the pick of the bowlers, each taking two wickets. Saud Shakeel (1-20), Sean Abbott (1-33), and Abrar Ahmed (1-33) also managed to grab a wicket each, while Faheem Ashraf (0-17) went wicketless.
Toss
The Karachi Kings won the toss and elected to bat first against the Quetta Gladiators in the eighth match of the tenth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) at the Karachi stadium on Friday evening.
The Kings were looking to bounce back in the tournament after suffering a comprehensive defeat against the Lahore Qalandars in their previous match.
Playing XIs
Karachi Kings: David Warner (cap), Tim Seifert (wk), James Vince, Muhammad Riazullah, Irfan Khan Niazi, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nabi, Aamer Jamal, Abbas Afridi, Hassan Ali, Mir Hamza
Quetta Gladiators: Saud Shakeel (cap), Finn Allen, Hassan Nawaz, Kusal Mendis (wk), Rilee Rossouw, Khawaja Nafay, Faheem Ashraf, Sean Abbott, Mohammad Amir, Abrar Ahmed, Ali Majid
