PSL 2020: Qualifier, MUL vs KAR – Karachi’s maiden final, A rare Tie in the PSL, Babar's records and more stats

Karachi Kings sneaked into the PSL finale following a Super Over win against the Multan Sultans during the qualifier match on Saturday. The home team held the Multan franchise to 40/4 in seven overs but the opponent finished strongly on 141/7. Karachi cruised in the chase as their opener Babar Azam scored 65 in only 53 balls with help of seven boundaries.

When the equation came down to 25 from 22 balls, the Karachi team lost as many as five wickets in the next 18 balls. Skipper Imad Wasim had to hit a boundary on the last ball to push the game into the Super Over. Sherfane Rutherford’s boundaries got Karachi Kings 13 runs in the Super Over which was more than enough for Mohammad Amir who in return gave away just nine by nailing the yorkers.

Here are the statistical highlights from the Super Over win of Karachi Kings during MUL vs KAR:

Karachi’s maiden final:

1 – Karachi Kings made it to the finals for the first time in the history of the Pakistan Super League. The Karachi franchise got into the playoffs in all the four previous seasons but crashed out before reaching the finale. In fact, Karachi Kings won only one of the six playoff matches they played in the previous four editions.

A rare Tie in the PSL:

3 – The MUL vs KAR game became only the 3rd match in the history of the Pakistan Super League to end in a Tie. The other two such games involved Lahore Qalandars during the 2018 edition in the space of ten days. Qalandar’s first tie was against Islamabad United which they lost in the Super Over but defeated the Karachi Kings during their 2nd appearance in a Super Over.

A rare Tied game in Pakistan:

2015 – The MUL vs KAR game was first Twenty20 game on Pakistan soil in more than five years to end in a Tie. The last T20 Tie in Pakistan was the 2015 T20 Cup match between Bahawalpur Region and Hyderabad region.

4 – Four of the eight Twenty20 matches which ended in a Tie on Pakistan soil were hosted by the Karachi’s National Stadium only. Other three such games came between 2013 and 2014 during domestic T20 competitions. The Dubai Sports City Stadium (5) is the only venue that has witnessed more than four T20s ending in a Tie.

The 2006 T20 Cup game between Karachi Zebras and Peshawar Panthers was hosted by Karachi which also ended in a Tie but the result was determined as Karachi winning the contest having lost fewer wickets. It was one of the five Twenty20 matches which were won by the teams for losing fewer wickets despite the game ending in a Tie.

Babar goes past Kamran:

13 – Number of fifties by Babar Azam in his Pakistan Super League career; the most number of fifty-plus scores for any player in the league history. Babar went past Kamran Akmal’s tally of 12 50+ scores (9 50s, 3 100s) with his 65-run knock during MUL vs KAR.

225 – Babar has aggregated 225 runs across five PSL innings against the Multan Sultans. Only Fakhar Zaman (257) and Luke Ronchi (233) scored more runs in the PSL than Babar against the Multan franchise. In fact, the 65-run knock was Babar’s 3rd fifty in the league against Multan; the joint-most alongside Fakhar and Ronchi.

Babar betters his own record:

410 – Runs amassed by Babar Azam in PSL 2020; the most by any player in a PSL edition for Karachi Kings. Babar went past his own record of 402 runs which he created during the 2018 edition. Overall, Babar’s 410 runs are the 4th most by any player in a single edition of PSL.

Tanvir features in a Super Over after a while:

4 – Sohail Tanvir bowled the Super Over for Multan Sultans during MUL vs KAR was his 4th T20 Super Over where he rolled his arms but the first in more than six years. In fact, this was the first time Tanvir was involved in a T20 Tied game since the 2015 T20I between Pakistan and England.

He bowled for Rawalpindi Rams against Faisalabad Wolves in 2013 and against Karachi Zebras in 2014 and also for the South African domestic T20 side, the Lions against Otago in CLT20 2013. Rawalpindi team won on both instances as Tanvir gave away only nine runs. Lions lost the game on boundary count as both sides made 13 runs apiece.