Karachi Kings Sunday defeated Lahore Qalandars to claim its maiden victory in the ongoing Pakistan Super League’s eighth match at the National Bank Cricket Stadium in Karachi.
Skipper Imad Wasim’s last over followed by the two dismissals by Akif Javed gave Kings the much-needed control against Qalandars. The Kings side received two early breakthroughs by Aamer Yamin and Mohammad Amir, as Tahir Baig and Kamran Ghulam led the run-chase. Being added in the Kings’ squad as a replacement for an injured Mir Hamza, young bowler Akif Javed sent the two batters back to the dressing room by striking twice in his third over.
After that, Imad added to the defending champions miseries as he tricked Hussain Talat with a spinning delivery, which the all-rounder missed and Matthew Wade was quick to tumble the stumps. Aamer struck again as he got the wicket of the dangerous batter David Wiese, who left the field after scoring only nine runs. Lahore Qalandars kept losing wickets as Ben Cutting claimed two wickets in his first over bowled at a crucial time. The all-rounder took the wickets of skipper Shaheen Shah Afridi and Sikandar Raza.
The Qalandars made a good start as Fakhar Zaman and Tahir started the run-chase with a great approach, hitting boundaries on numerous occasions. However, the home side found the breakthrough as Aamer toppled Fakhar’s stumps with a good length delivery after the left-handed batter scored 15 runs off 12 balls. In the next over, Amir claimed the crucial wicket of Shai Hope, who had to walk back after scoring only one run. A brilliant catch from Irfan Niazi was the reason for Hope’s departure.
Earlier, Karachi Kings handed Lahore Qalandars a target of 186 runs. After James Vince’s 46-run knock, skipper Imad and Cutting put on a 50-run partnership to help their side post a competitive total against the defending champions. However, Cutting (20) was bowled out by Shaheen Shah Afridi, who delivered a fiery delivery to topple the stumps. The home side’s skipper, Imad, scored a crucial 35 runs off 19 balls.
Before the two all-rounders’ partnership, the Qalandars took three quick wickets to make a comeback against the Kings. Vince and Matthew Wade, promoted to open, stitched a 69-run partnership for the first wicket to put their side in control. However, the Australian batter was sent packing after scoring 36 runs following a run-out. Haider Ali was the next batter to take the crease, but his stay was brief as Liam Dawson bowled him out after he gathered 18 runs.
Despite losing Wade and Haider, the home side were in a good spot, but Haris Rauf and Zaman Khan struck to help their side turn things around. Rauf sent veteran batter Shoaib Malik (10) back to the pavilion, while Zaman toppled Vince’s wickets to reduce them to 124-4. The England batter scored 46 runs off 36 balls, including three boundaries and two maximums. For Lahore Qalandars, skipper Shaheen, Zaman, Haris and Dawson claimed a wicket each. Earlier, Lahore Qalandars won the toss and opted to bowl first against Karachi Kings.
