Sports Report
RAWALPINDI: Faheem Ashraf’s exceptional knock helped Islamabad United defeat Multan Sultans by two wickets in a closely contested game of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2023 on Tuesday.
Faheem Ashraf played an exceptional knock and took Islamabad United over the line. Islamabad United chased down a huge total of 209 with one ball to spare. Multan Sultans will feel like they let this one slip away from them as, at one point, they were in a good position to win this match.
Faheem Ashraf’s astounding 48-run knock barred Multan Sultans from qualifying for the playoff as Islamabad United pulled off the highest successful run chase of PSL history.
Put into bat first; the Sultans piled a massive total on the board at the back of fantastic knocks by Masood and David.
Earlier, the dependable opening pair of Sultans once again laid a solid foundation as the duo accumulated 57 runs in the first powerplay.
United’s skipper Shadab Khan, however, struck on the first delivery of his spell to break the crucial partnership as he got rid of the danger man Mohammad Rizwan, who scored a brisk 18-ball 33, hitting a boundary and three sixes.
Shadab then struck again in his third over to draw a second success for his side as he removed in-form Rilee Rossouw cheaply for just 15.
Following the slump, David joined Masood in the middle and wasted no time launching an onslaught on the United’s bowlers. The pair stitched a match-defining third wicket and added 80 runs to the total in just 38 deliveries.
David was the core aggressor of the stand and soon brought up his half-century in just 20 deliveries after Faheem Ashraf broke the threatening stand by removing Shan.
The left-handed opener top-scored for the Sultans with a 50-ball 75, which featured 12 boundaries.
David continued charging on the United bowlers before falling to Mohammad Wasim Jr in the final over. He scored a brisk 60 off a mere 27 balls, hitting four boundaries and five sixes.
Meanwhile, Wasim Jr struck again and removed David Miller (11) on the final delivery of the last over to restrict Sultans to 205/5 in the allotted 20 overs.
Shadab and Wasim Jr led the bowling attack for the United with two wickets each, while Faheem could pick up a wicket.
Islamabad United
Alex Hales, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Colin Munro, Shadab Khan (c), Azam Khan, Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Mubasir Khan, Rumman Raees, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Fazalhaq Farooq
Multan Sultans
Mohammad Rizwan (c), Shan Masood, Rilee Rossouw, David Miller, Tim David, Kieron Pollard, Anwar Ali, Usama Mir, Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Ilyas, Ihsanullah
