LAHORE: Bowlers bolstered Karachi Kings to a dominating 86-run victory over Lahore Qalandars in the last group fixture of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) season eight at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Sunday.
Set to chase 197 runs target, the Lahore Qalandars’ batting lineup crumbled against a disciplined Karachi Kings’ bowling attack and was consequently bundled out for a meager 110 in the absence of Rashid Khan, who got retired hurt.
The Lahore Qalandars were never in the hunt as the side lost their in-form openers Fakhar Zaman (13) and Abdullah Shafique (2) cheaply with just 20 runs on the scoreboard in four overs.
Lahore Qalandars then dealt with another setback when Akif Javed castled Kamran Ghulam (11) in the sixth over, tightening the Karachi Kings’ grip on the game.
Lahore Qalandars were mostly on the backfoot during the run-chase, losing wickets at regular intervals.
Hussain Talat was the highest scorer for Lahore with a run-a-ball 25.
Imad Wasim, Akif Javed, Mohammad Umar, and Imran Tahir bagged two wickets each for the winning side.
Karachi Kings batting
Opting to bat first, the Karachi Kings’ batters dominated the depleted Qalandars’ bowling attack as the visitors piled up a massive total on the scoreboard after some collective effort.
Earlier, the Karachi Kings got off to an unwanted start as opening batter Haider Ali fell in the first over after scoring eight off five deliveries.
Following the early setback, debutant Akhlaq and Tayyab Tahir scripted their side’s recovery as the pair added 70 runs to the total quickly.
Tayyab, who was looking in good form to bring up his second half-century of the season, fell 10 runs short as Hussain Talat broke the crucial partnership in the eighth over. He scored a quick 40 off 23 deliveries with four boundaries and a six.
Talat struck again in the same over as he dismissed Qasim Akram (2) to dent the Karachi Kings’ flying start, restricting them to 83/3 in first eight overs.
Following back-to-back dismissals, skipper Imad Wasim joined Akhlaq in the middle and settled things down for Karachi Kings with a brief fourth-wicket partnership, with the latter bringing up his fifty in 34 balls.
However, Akhlaq could not stretch his brilliant knock and fell to pacer Haris Rauf in the 13th over. He top-scored for the Karachi Kings with 51 in 36 balls, hitting five boundaries and two sixes.
Imad Wasim then changed gears after Akhlaq’s departure and charged on the Lahore Qalandars’ bowlers amid his vital 52-run partnership with Ben Cutting.
The skipper carried on his sublime form to score a blistering 45 in 31 deliveries, laced up with six boundaries before Zaman castled him in the 18th over.
Cutting then thrashed Haris all over the park in the 19th over to bolster the total at the backend before falling in the same over after an important cameo of 33 in 14 deliveries, featuring two boundaries and three sixes.
Later, all-rounder James Fuller’s unbeaten 10 runs in five deliveries ensured the Karachi Kings posted a defendable total.
Zaman, Haris, and Talat led the bowling attack for the Lahore Qalandars with two wickets each, while Dilbar made one scalp.
