SHARJAH: Luke Ronchi hammered a brilliant knock as Islamabad United overwhelmed Karachi Kings by eight wickets in the 15th match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) at Sharjah Stadium here on Sunday night. Chasing a formidable target of 154, Islamabad raced home in the 18th over at the expense of just two wickets, courtesy breathtaking 71 off 37 ball from wicketkeeper-batsman Ronchi. He was well supported by fellow opener JP Duminy, who remained unbeaten on 43 off 44 balls. Ronchi’s blitz in the Powerplay took a slow pitch out of the equation after Karachi had huffed and heaved their way to 153, a total that appeared competitive during the innings break. Duminy, who opened with Ronchi, made use of the release in pressure with his unbeaten knock. Karachi never looked in control of the game as Islamabad continued with their onslaught.
Earlier, after being put in to bat first, Karachi posted a competitive total of 153 for the loss of six in their allotted 20 overs, courtesy half-centuries from opener Khurram Manzoor (51 off 41) and Babar Azam (55 off 53). Islamabad were rewarded early when Mohammad Sami burst through Joe Denly’s defences. What followed was a 101-run partnership between Khurram and Babar for the second wicket. The pair looked content with offering the full face of the bat through most of the innings as balls barely rose above knee height off the surface. Although their stand didn’t blatantly hurt Islamabad through it’s scoring rate – largely hovering around run-a-ball before an unavoidable push – it set up a slog-overs finish that saw Mohammad Rizwan make a whirlwind 21 off 9 in the face of regular wickets to lift them to 153 for 6. For Islamabad, all-rounder Faheem Ashraf was the star of the show with the bowl, as he claimed figures of three for 23.
Brief scores: Islamabad United 156 for 2 (Luke Ronchi 71, JP Duminy 43 not out)
beat Karachi Kings 153 for 6 (Babar Azam 55, Khurram Manzoor 51, Faheem Ashraf 3-23) by eight wickets.
Today’s match (Tuesday March 6) at 09:00 PM PST
16th Match – Peshawar Zalmi v Multan Sultans at Dubai International Cricket Stadium
Published in Daily Times, March 6th 2018.