Lahore (SBR): Quetta Gladiators registeredtheir second win in HBL PSL X as they beat Karachi Kings by a close margin of five runs in their first home game here at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore on Friday night.
Saud Shakeel-led outfit defended their 142-run total with an all-round bowling performance spearheaded by pace trio of Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Mohammad Amir and Khurram Shahzad, who bagged a combined haul of six scalps for 79 runs in 12 overs.
Player of the match Abrar Ahmed gave away just 15 runs in his four overs snapping the important wicket of Khushdil Shah, who returned for a four-ball duck.
Karachi Kings were jolted early on in the chase by Amir, who struck to remove David Warner for a run-a-ball four. Tim Seifert (48, 27b, 5x4s, 2x6s) and James Vince (29, 28b, 3x4s, 1x6) then stitched a solid 73-run stand off 49 balls before Saud outfoxed Vince in the ninth over.
Three overs later Wasim Jnr got rid of Seifert inflicting a batting collapse as Kings slipped from 77-2 in 8.4 overs to 115-8 in 17.3 overs. Hasan Ali’s late charge including three fours and one six in an unbeaten 13-ball 24 didn’t prove enough as his team managed 137-8 in the allotted 20 overs.
Earlier, Quetta got off to a rusty start as they lost three wickets for just 20 runs in 3.3 overs after being invited to bat first. Hasan Ali, who snapped all three wickets, struck twice in his first over removing Saud Shakeel and Finn Allen in a space of four balls before castling Rilee Rossouw in the fourth over.
Kusal Mendis (36, 22b, 5x4s) and HBL PSL debutant Mark Chapman tried to reignite the Gladiators’ innings by stitching a rapid 14-ball 24-run stand before the latter was bowled by Mohammad Nabi, while the former fell prey to Mohammad Abbas Afridi.
No.7 batter Faheem Ashraf got together with Hasan Nawaz in ninth over as the duo brought their team’s innings back on track by launching a flurry of boundaries. Faheem top-scored with a belligerent 43 off 27 balls hitting four fours and three sixes, while Hasan struck two fours in his 34-ball 35.
The 59-run sixth-wicket stand, which took Quetta from 69-5 to 128-6 was broken by 20-year-old Fawad Ali. Gladiators then lost the last four wickets for a mere 14 runs as they were bundled for 142 in 19.3 overs.
Hasan was the pick of the bowlers for Kings as the returned figures of 3.3-0-33-3, while Mir Hamza and Abbas picked up two wickets each.
Scores in brief
Quetta Gladiators 142 all out, 20 overs (Faheem Ashraf 43, Kusal Mendis 36, Hasan Nawaz 35; Hasan Ali 3-33, Mir Hamza 2-24, Mohammad Abbas Afridi 2-31)
Karachi Kings 137-8, 20 overs (Tim Seifert 48, James Vince 29, Hasan Ali 24 not out; Mohammad Wasim Jnr 2-22, Mohammad Amir 2-26, Khurram Shahzad 2-31)
Player of the match – Abrar Ahmed (Quetta Gladiators)
Saturday’s fixture: Lahore Qalandars v Multan Sultans at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore; 8pm PKT
