KARACHI – The Multan Sultans secured their spot in the playoffs of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) season nine with a convincing 20-run victory over the Karachi Kings at the National Bank Cricket Arena.
Mohammad Rizwan’s team successfully defended their total of 189/3 by restricting the home team to 169/7.
In pursuit of a challenging target of 190, the Karachi Kings struggled to keep up with the required run rate, managing only 169 runs for the loss of seven wickets in their allotted 20 overs.
The Kings faced a shaky start to their innings, losing two key wickets—Tim Seifert (1) and James Vince (7)—within the batting powerplay.
Captain Shan Masood and Shoaib Malik provided some stability to the innings with a partnership of 53 runs for the third wicket. However, Masood’s dismissal in the 10th over halted their momentum.
Despite Malik’s efforts, the Kings continued to lose wickets at regular intervals, eventually falling short of the target. Malik top-scored for the team with 38 runs off 28 balls.
Hasan Ali and Mohammad Nawaz added valuable runs towards the end of the innings, but it wasn’t enough to secure victory for the Kings.
For the Sultans, Usama Mir was the most successful bowler, claiming two wickets, while other bowlers contributed with crucial breakthroughs.
Earlier, the Sultans had set a formidable total on the scoreboard, thanks to an impressive partnership between Usman Khan and captain Rizwan. Usman’s explosive century propelled the Sultans to a commanding position, with Rizwan also contributing with a half-century.
Playing XIs:
Multan Sultans: Reeza Hendricks, Mohammad Rizwan (c/wk), Dawid Malan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Tayyab Tahir, David Willey, Chris Jordan, Usama Mir, Abbas Afridi, Shahnawaz Dahani
Karachi Kings: Shan Masood (c), James Vince, Mohammad Akhlaq, Shoaib Malik, Irfan Niazi, Mohammad Nawaz, Daniel Sams, Hasan Ali, Blessing Muzarabani, Mir Hamza, Tabraiz Shamsi
