Babar, Umaid shine as Karachi tame Peshawar in HBL PSL

By Khalid Hussain

February 22, 2020

KARACHI: It’s tough to keep Darren Sammy out of a HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) encounter.

The 36-year-old West Indian star together with Liam Livingstone almost pulled off a Houdini’s act for Peshawar Zalmi but a superb final over by Umaid Asif helped Karachi Kings to begin season 5 with a bang.

The Kings first posted 201-4 with the help of sparkling fifties from Babar Azam and Imad Wasim and then survived some anxious moments to seal a 10-run triumph here at the National Stadium on Friday evening.

It could have been a different result as the Sammy- Livingstone partnership was at one stage threatening to record the fourth successful 200-plus run-chase in PSL history.

The two got together with Zalmi at 128-5, needing 74 from just 33 balls. The duo took them agonsingly close. Englishman Livingstone, 26, smashed an unbeaten 54 from 29 balls, hitting two fours and three sixes, and played the lead role in a stunning 62-run partnership with Sammy (30 off 20) to keep the chase alive after Peshawar had lost five wickets for 128 runs in 14.3 overs. Sammy hit two fours and sixes in his whirlwind knock.

It all came down to the final over by Umaid with Peshawar needing 16 runs to pull off what could have been an incredible win. But Umaid held his nerve as he bowled at a tight length and was rewarded with the wickets of Sammy and Wahab Riaz.

With 43 off 26 balls, Kamran Akmal was the other notable contributor with the bat as Zalmi scored 191 for seven in 20 overs. The opener struck five fours and two sixes. Umaid and Chris Jordan equally shared four wickets between them for 23 and 39 runs. Mohammad Amir and Cameron Delport took a wicket each.

Earlier, Babar Azam and Imad Wasim scored half-centuries after Sammy, the Zalmi captain, opted to bowl first. Babar, later named man of the match, scored 78 off 56, hitting seven fours and two sixes, and Imad smashed three fours and three sixes in his 30-ball 50. The pair crafted a solid 97-run partnership for the third-wicket.

Hasan Ali (two for 52) and Mohammad Mohsin (one for 35) were the wicket-takers for Peshawar Zalmi. The match marked the comeback of left-handed opener Sharjeel Khan, who returned to action after serving a ban for his role in the PSL spot-fixing scandal of 2017. He scored 19 from 11 balls with two sixed and four before falling to Hasan Ali.

With the win, Karachi moved level with Quetta Gladiators at the top of the table on two points after two games. Peshawar joined Islamabad United on zero points, alongside Multan Sultans and Lahore Qalandars who were set to play their opening games later on Friday.

In their next PSL matches, Peshawar Zalmi and Karachi Kings play Quetta Gladiators on Saturday and Sunday, respectively, at the National Stadium in Karachi. —with inputs from agencies

Peshawar Zalmi won toss

Karachi Kings

Babar Azam run out 78

Sharjeel Khan c Malik b Hasan 19

CS Delport b Mohsin 20

*Imad Wasim c Malik b Hasan 50

CAK Walton not out 9

Iftikhar Ahmed not out 16

Extras (b 1, lb 1, nb 2, w 5) 9

Total (4 wickets, 20 overs) 201

Did not bat: †Mohammad Rizwan, Umaid Asif, Mohammad Amir, CJ Jordan, Arshad Iqbal

Fall: 1-25, 2-73, 3-170, 4-180