Daily Times

KARACHI: Mohammad Rizwan and Sohaib Maqsood hammered half centuries as Multan Sultans defeated Lahore Qalandars by seven wickets to record their first win of the Pakistan Super League VI at the National Stadium here on Friday. Chasing target of 158, Multan raced home in 16.2 overs. After losing opener Chris Lynn for zero and James Vince for 5, Rizwan and Sohaib put the Lahore bowlers to sword. Rizwan, who posted his second half-century and became the leading run-getter of the season, scored a breezy 49-ball 76, studded by 12 fours while Sohaib hit seven fours and two sixes in his undefeated 61 off 41 balls. The pair stitched a match-winning 110-run partnership for the third wicket.

Shaheen Shah Afridi struck in the first over as he clean bowled Lynn with a scorching yorker in the first over. Vince was next to go, with scoreboard reading at 30 for two. But the two wickets did not inflict the harm which Lahore desired as captain Rizwan’s subliminal form stretched into this match and he stroked them out of trouble. The wicketkeeper-batsman, who got recently promoted to Category A in the PCB’s Central Contract List for 2020-21, accumulated 44 off 22 in the powerplay overs to take Multan’s score to 58 at the conclusion of the sixth over. Both Rizwan and Sohaib played shots all around the ground, and were treat to watch for the fans, who showed up in numbers after 50 percent of fans were allowed for the first time in PSL 6. For Lahore, Shaheen picked two wickets for 29.

Earlier, after being put into bat by Multan captain Rizwan, Lahore managed to score 157 for six thanks to Mohammad Hafeez’s second consecutive half-century. The right-handed Hafeez came to the crease when Lahore lost opening pair Fakhar Zaman (9 off 11) and Sohail Akhtar (7 off 12) for 17. Hafeez scored 60 off 35 balls. The two early dismissals combined with top-class bowling allowed Lahore only 25 runs in the first six overs – their lowest score in the powerplay. Joe Denly and Hafeez put up an 89-run stand for the third wicket, in which Denly contributed a 29-ball 31, smashing two fours and as many sixes.

Hafeez, brought up his eighth half century of the PSL in 27 balls, stroking right-arm fast Shahnawaz Dhani for a six over long-off. His innings included three fours and five towering sixes. Samit Patel’s unbeaten 26 off 20 helped Lahore go past 150-mark. For Multan, Carlos Brathwaite and Shahnawaz picked two wickets apiece for 20 and 39 runs, respectively. The was Lahore first defeat of the season.

Today’s match

Karachi Kings vs Multan Sultans at 2:00 pm

Peshawar Zalmi vs Islamabad United at 7:00 pm