Daily Times

DUBAI: Junaid Khan was the hat-trick hero as Multan Sultans defeated Lahore Qalandars by 43 runs in their second match of the Pakistan Super League 2018 at Dubai International Stadium here on Friday evening. Kumar Sangakkara produced another master class with the bat as Multan, after being put into bat first, posted more than competitive total on the board of 179 for the loss of five wickets in their allotted 20 overs.

Multan, who had been put in to bat, got off to a flying start, in part due to Lahore’s sloppy start: six wides and four byes were conceded in the first five overs. Sangakkara once again finished with the top score of 63 off 44 for Multan, which included five fours and three sixes.

He was once again well supported by captain Shoaib Malik, who scored a brilliant 48 off 38 with the help of two fours and three sixes. Lahore were never quite able to drag Multan back. At one stage, it looked like they would need all of those runs, but a late Lahore implosion meant they simply boosted their net run-rate.

For Lahore, Bangladesh left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman was the pick of the bowlers as he claimed two wickets and just gave away 22 runs in his four overs.

Chasing 180 was never going to be enough for Lahore, but after a slow start, opener Fakhar Zaman and middle-order batsman Umar Akmal put Brendon McCullum’s side ahead in the game with 65-run partnership for the third-wicket. However, both Akmal and Zaman failed to materialise their start as Lahore were eventually bowled out for 136 in the 18th over. Lahore lost their last seven wickets for just four runs to fold meekly.

Zaman finished the innings with the top score of 49 off 30 balls, including one four and four sixes. For Multan, pacer Junaid and leg-spinner Imran Tahir claimed three wickets each. Imran Tahir up for Multan when Lahore inched ahead. With 48 required in the last five overs and six wickets still in hand, Tahir came on to ball. Within five balls, he dismissed Sohail Akhtar, and Aamer Yamin. Both of them were bowled, but their wickets highlighted the range of Tahir’s variety. Junaid also became the second bowler in the history of PSL to pick hat-trick as he claimed wickets of Yasir Shah, Cameron Delport and Raza Hasan on successive deliveries. Multan have moved to the top of the table with two wins from two games, while Lahore sit at the bottom on net run-rate after a heavy loss.

Brief scores: Multan Sultans 179 for 5 (Kumar Sangakkara 63, Shoaib Malik 48) beat Lahore Qalandars 136 (Fakhar Zaman 49, Junaid Khan 3-24, Imran Tahir 3-27) by 43 runs.

Today’s matches (Sunday 25 Feb 2018):
6th Match — Multan Sultans v Islamabad United (04:30 PM PST)
at Dubai International Cricket Stadium
7th Match — Karachi Kings v Peshawar Zalmi (09: 00 PM PST)
at Dubai International Cricket Stadium

Published in Daily Times, February 25^th 2018.