Imran Tahir stars as Multan Sultans thrash Karachi Kings in HBL PSL opener
- Side registered a seven-wicket win in HBL PSL opener
KARACHI, JAN 28: Imran Tahir and Mohammad Rizwan starred as Multan Sultans began their title defense with a convincing victory against Karachi Kings.
Chasing 125, the Rizwan-led unit comfortably went over the line in 18.2 overs with seven wickets in hand at the National Stadium, Karachi on Thursday.
The tournament began with a glittering curtain raiser ceremony starring iconic singers Atif Aslam and Aima Baig, who sang the HBL PSL7 anthem.
After opting to bowl, the defending champions restricted the hosts to 124-5 in this allotted 20 overs despite a 66-run opening stand between Babar Azam and Sharjeel Khan.
Sharjeel was the first batter to depart for the Kings and he was caught in the deep by Shan Masood on Imran Tahir’s delivery.
The wicket bought Sultans back in the game, as Khushdil Shah removed Captain Babar, who looked off colour out in the middle, in the next over. He scored 23 off 29 balls.
Joe Clarke made a 26-run contribution to the side as they were restricted to 124-5.
For Sultans, Imran Tahir was the star of the show with the bowl as he managed to claim figures of three for 16 in his four-over spell.
In reply, Sultans went off to a flying start courtesy of Shan Masood and Mohammad Rizwan. Shan was caught in the circle as he tried to clear Mohammad Ilyas for the boundary. The left-hander scored 26 off 18.
Meanwhile, Rizwan continued his impressive run with the bat, as he went on to score an unbeaten half-century. The wicketkeeper-batter scored 52 off 42 balls.
Sohaib Maqsood’s 30 off 31 balls bring Sultans closer to the target. However, there was a sting in the tail as Kings pick two quick wickets to spoil Sultan’s early party. Sultans scored 126-3 in 18.2 overs.
Mohammad Nabi was the star with the bowl for Kings as he claimed figures of two for 13 in his four-over spell.
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Courtesy samaa.tv
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