On a nine-match losing streak stretching back to PSL6, Karachi Kings picked up their first points of the season with a 22-run victory over Lahore Qalandars
Lahore: Karachi Kings 149, Lahore Qalandars 127-9 – Karachi Kings won by 22 runs
Karachi Kings brought their losing streak, which stretched back to the eliminator match in PSL6, to an end with a 22-run victory over Lahore Qalandars.
Defeat in Lahore would have made Karachi the sixth side to lose ten matches in a row on the men’s T20 franchise league circuit, but while still guaranteed the wooden spoon, Babar Azam’s team have avoided joining Sydney Thunder, St Lucia Stars, Pune Warriors, Delhi Daredevils and Antigua Hawksbills in that particular club.
Batting first, the Kings once again struggled early on, with Joe Clarke and Sharjeel Khan departing inside the opening three overs.
Captain Azam, however, had a more productive outing, scoring 39 runs off 32 balls and enjoying stands with Qasim Akram (26) and Rohail Nazir (18) before being stumped by Phil Salt one ball after drinks to reduce his side to 81 for 4.
Nazir fell three overs later and his dismissal triggered a collapse which saw the Kings slip from 99 for 4 to 116 for 8. Mohammad Nabi, Imad Wasim and Chris Jordan all departed for single-figure knocks as Rashid Khan and Mohammad Hafeez made inroads with the ball.
Rashid Khan took 4 for 17 for Lahore Qalandars [Arif Ali/AFP via Getty Images]
However, Lewis Gregory and Usman Shinwari prevented an all-out collapse, putting on 30 runs off 23 balls for the ninth wicket before both falling to Zaman Khan in the final over as the Kings were all out for 149 with one ball to spare.
Zaman Khan and Rashid Khan were the standout bowlers, picking up 4 for 16 and 4 for 17, respectively, while Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hafeez also picked up wickets.
In reply, Mir Hamza did something no other bowler has managed in PSL7, removing Fakhar Zaman for just one run in the second over – the first time the Qalandars opener has been dismissed for fewer than 30 runs and only the second time he’s failed to pass 50 in eight innings.
He then picked up Abdullah Shafique in the fourth over to reduce Lahore Qalandars to 10 for 2 and set the tone for a laboured batting performance.
Kamran Ghulam was the next to depart, removed by Wasim for 13 (15) in the ninth over, before two wickets in two balls in the 12th – Phil Salt caught by Azam off Jordan for 8 (12) and Hafeez (33 off 24) runout by Akram and Nazir – left the Qalandars floundering on 64 for 5 with 54 balls remaining.
David Wiese (31) and Harry Brook (26) threatened a nervy finish for the Kings, putting on 55 runs from 42 balls for the fifth wicket. However, man of the hour Hamza stepped up in the penultimate over, removing the duo in the space of three balls to leave Lahore 25 runs short with nine balls and three wickets remaining.
And unfortunately, the remaining batters could do nothing to stop the inevitable, with Hamza shutting out Rashid Khan and Afridi for the remainder of the 19th before the pair both fell for ducks in the 20th as Lahore closed on 127 for 9.
Hamza finished with career-best T20 figures of 4 for 27 while Jordan (2 for 23), Wasim (1 for 23) and Usman Shinwari (0 for 22) also performed well with the ball.
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