Islamabad United defeated Multan Sultans by two wickets in the 24th match of the eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi today.
Earlier, United won the toss and put the Sultans into contention, after which they set a target of 206 runs for United.
During the game, Faheem Ashraf surprised everyone with a brilliant chase for United, who have been nowhere near the target in their last five games. However, Fahim stood out for his team and won the match after a thrilling final.
Needing 18 runs in the last over bowled by Mohammad Ilyas, Faheem hit two boundaries and a six to chase down the target. The left-handed batsman set the tone for his team as he partnered skipper Shadab for a 39-run partnership.
In the end, he and Mohammad Wasim Jr. scored 12 off 28 runs to send United back into the chase. His match-winning knock was 51 runs off 26 balls that included five boundaries and two maximums.
Earlier, Shadab (44) and Colin Munro (40) scored 59 off 30 balls to challenge the Sultans’ bowlers in the middle. The two batsmen were instrumental in United’s run chase, which now holds the record for the highest successful run in PSL history.
Anwar Ali took three wickets while Ihsanullah and Usama Mir took two wickets each for the Sultans.
In the first innings, Tim David announced his arrival in PSL 8 with a bang as the right-hander scored a fifty off 20 balls to help the Sultans post a big total.
David, who made his T20I debut for Australia last year, played a powerful knock to beat the Sultans’ score in the presence of the well-rounded Shan Masood.
United’s right-handed bowlers were clueless in front of him. He scored a fifty off just 20 balls, the third fastest in the PSL, to mark his entry.
In all, he scored 60 off 27 balls, including four boundaries and five maximums to help the Sultans post 205-5 in 20 overs. David’s arrival also worked for Shan as the left-hander raced his score to contribute 50 to 75 in the team’s total.
After David beat the bowlers to one end, Shan was in fine form on a swing-friendly wicket. He hit 12 boundaries to help Sultans stay in a strong fight after losing a couple of quick wickets right after the power play.
Shan, along with skipper Mohammad Rizwan, started the 2021 PSL champions on a regular basis. Together they scored 57 runs in the powerplay. United captain Shadab gave his side a vital boost when he bagged Rizwan after the seventh over.
Rizwan scored 33 off 18 balls and was dismissed by Shadab’s clever bowling. He curled the ball behind the stumps with a sharp catch from Azam Khan. After back-to-back shots from Shadab after the powerplay, Shan stood firm and brought up another PSL fifty.
Shan scored 80 off 38 balls and David contributed heavily to the third wicket partnership. This has worked in favor of the Sultans as they will now look to defend their total to qualify for the play-offs.
For United, Shadab and Wasim took two wickets while Faheem took one.
Islamabad United won their first match against Multan Sultans in match 24 of Pakistan Super League (PSL) Season 8 in Rawalpindi on Tuesday.
Playing XI
Sultans of Multan: Mohammad Rizwan (c), Shan Masood, Riley Rossouw, David Miller, Tim David, Kieron Pollard, Anwar Ali, Usama Mir, Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Ilyas, Ihsanullah
Islamabad United: Alex Hales, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Colin Munro, Shadab Khan (c), Azam Khan, Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Mubasir Khan, Rumman Rais, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Fazalhaq Farooqui
