PSL 2017, Match 5 Review: Quetta Gladiators ease past Karachi Kings to register second win

Despite all the off-field drama surrounding the PSL, the action continued to roll out on the field. Quetta Gladiators were up against the Karachi Kings in the 5th match of the season. The Gladiators came into the encounter riding on a close victory against the Lahore Qalandars in their first match of the season. On the other hand, the Kings had a contrasting start to their campaign. They were badly beaten by the Peshawar Zalmi yesterday by 7 wickets. The Kings were desperate to notch up a win under their belt and the Gladiators hoped to continue their good start.

Quetta Gladiators skipper Sarfraz Ahmed won the toss and opted to field first. They went in with the overseas combination of Kevin Pietersen, Rilee Rossouw, Thisara Perera and Tymal Mills. The Karachi Kings played with Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, and Ravi Bopara along with skipper Kumar Sangakkara to make their overseas quartet. Surprisingly, Ryan McLaren had to miss out from the Kings lineup. Shahzaib Hasan walked in with Chris Gayle to start the proceedings for the Karachi Kings.

Gayle hit a six early on in the innings to give hopes to the sparse crowd at the venue. Hasan looked good for his 13-ball 19 that was laced with 3 fours. But the opening stand did not last long as Tymal Mills caught and bowled Hasan in the 4th over. An over later, Chris Gayle was dismissed in a similar fashion off the bowling of Thisara Perera on 10 (14). The recent find of Pakistan batting, Babar Azam, and skipper Kumar Sangakkara were the two new men at the crease.

Both players played with caution to see their side get out of the two quick jolts. Kings had a mere 37 runs on the board in the powerplay. Azam and Sangakkara added 44 runs for the third wicket before Perera struck again to get rid of his countryman Sangakkara. Sanga was dismissed on 25 (22) with a four and a six to his name. His departure brought the big man Kieron Pollard at the crease. The Pollardian swirl saw a six and a four coming from his bat before Mohammad Nawaz sent him packing on 14 (7) in the 15th over.

Also read – Imad Wasim denies PSL match fixing allegations

At 97/4, the Kings needed a big effort from set batsman Babar Azam. Azam continued to bat his way through as he saw wickets falling at regular intervals. The likes of Shoaib Malik and Ravi Bopara failed on the day. Azam, who brought up his fifty in 41 deliveries with 4 fours and a six, was dismissed on the very next delivery after reaching the milestone. He was run out kudos to a combined effort by Ahmed Shehzad and Perera in the penultimate over. The Karachi Kings eventually ended with 159/8 in their 20 overs. Perera was the pick of the bowlers with 3/34 to his name and Tymal Mills scalped 2/21 in his four overs.

The Quetta Gladiators kick-started their run chase with Asad Shafiq and Ahmed Shehzad opening the innings. Mohammad Amir shared the new ball with Imad Wasim for the Kings. The Gladiator were rocked early in the third over as Sohail Khan was brought into the attack. Sohail dismissed Shehzad on 11 (7) and then sent Kevin Pietersen for a golden duck in the third over of the innings to bring Rilee Rossouw at the crease.

Sohail looked to be in the middle of a dream spell. He dismissed Shafiq for 11 to bag his third wicket of the night. In came Sarfraz Ahmed to join Rossouw at the crease. At 30/3 in 4.2 overs, the task of rebuilding the innings was in the hands of the veteran Proteas T20 star and the Quetta Gladiators skipper. Both did the job exceedingly well as Karachi Kings skipper Sangakkara used as many as 7 bowlers during the middle overs. However, none could break their resistance.

While Sarfaraz played cautiously and was seen struggling with his timing, Rossouw looked in a threatening form. The South African who recently signed a Kolpak deal, reached his fifty in just 50 deliveries. Soon, Sarfaraz also stepped on the accelerator and found his feet moving well. The duo eased past their 100 run stand and it was all Gladiators in the run chase. Sarfaraz notched up his fifty in 38 balls and the chase was well under control. With 10 needed off the last two, it was always going to be an easy task.

Also read – Kings XI Punjab appoint Jagdeesh Arunkumar as the batting coach for IPL 2017

It was all formality once both batsmen got in. The Gladiators were home with 7 wickets in hand and 5 balls to spare. Rossouw remained unbeaten on 76 off 53 balls with 7 fours and 3 sixes. Sarfraz ended up with an unbeaten 56 off 42 ball studded with four boundaries and a maximum. Karachi Kings suffered their second consecutive defeat.

Brief Scores:

Karachi Kings 159/8 in 20 overs (Babar Azam 50, Sangakkara 25, Perera 3/34, Mills 2/21)

Quetta Gladiators 160/3 in 19.1 overs (Rossouw 76*, Sarfaraz 56*, Sohail 3/23)