78/1. That was the scoreboard after the powerplay in favour of Karachi Kings; batting first this is an amazing start by any stretch of the imagination. To add to the fact that is a knockout game, these 78 runs was just the start Karachi Kings needed, it is a start which is good enough to deflate the confidence of a bowling side.
Imad Wasim won the toss and elected to bat first, the 2nd time a captain has won the toss and elected to bat first (He also did it first time against Multan Sultans). In a tournament where sides have always preferred chasing and for a good reason as 22 of the 33 winners in this PSL have been chasers, the decision to bat first must have been influenced by the change in the chasing trend in Karachi with 4 of the 5 winners in the game before this being sides which have batted first.
With the start Karachi had in the powerplay, the decision to bat first felt like a good one. Karachi plundered twelve 4s and two 6s in the powerplay, with 60 runs just coming through boundaries. Colin Munro provided the explosive start scoring 32 runs in 11 balls, and Babar on the other end scoring 29 runs in 18 balls in the powerplay overs. Things looked ominous for Islamabad United.
Enter Shadab Khan, bowling the first over after the powerplay he applied the much needed break in the Karachi innings. Not giving away much in terms of line and length. Karachi Kings saw their scoring rate dip down from 13 to 9.23 RPO by the end of Shadab’s 4 overs. In the 7 overs in which Shadab bowled from one end, Kings managed to score only 42 runs at a run a ball. The pressure applied from United saw Babar Azam also slow down his innings, eventually ending up with 42 runs in his 32 balls.
Things got worse for the Kings as they further saw their brilliant start fade away; they could manage only 28 runs in the final 5 overs while losing 6 wickets. Mohammad Musa picking the wickets of the dangerous Colin Ingram and Iftikhar Ahmed swung the game in Islamabad’s favour, with no big hitters in the side, scoring boundaries became a near impossible task against a United attack which has been nailing their yorkers, the final 5 overs saw just a 4 and a 6.
Karachi Kings just added 83 runs in the 84 balls they faced after the powerplay overs, to comeback from that assault described Islamabad United’s fighting spirit. At a time when they could have easily been chasing 200 or more, the Islamabad bowlers pulled things back brilliantly to make it a more accessible chase for the batsmen.
Islamabad did not have the same rollicking start as Karachi Kings had, Amir and Imad Wasim did not bowl any loose balls early up which saw Ronchi play an unusual innings which saw him dismissed for 5 runs in 9 balls. With 48 runs on the board after the powerplay, the asking rate was still under control.
But the chase was always going to be a tricky one, more so with emerging player Umer Khan who has picked 15 wickets in his short T20 career, 13 of these wickets being batsmen batting in the top 4. He had the Islamabad United batsmen dancing to his tunes, at one point bowling 8 balls without conceding a run, with his eventual figures being ruined by a 6 from Hussain Talat, but 4 overs for just 16 runs and picking up two big wickets (Delport and Walton), all this in an eliminator was stuff of dreams from Umer Khan.
Alex Hales who was picked as a replacement for Ian Bell provided the stable presence in the middle, he faced 15 balls from Umer Khan while scoring just 4 runs. While it might be a sign of a batsman who was being dominated by the bowler, Hales was doing the dirty work of seeing off Umer Khan and with the batting line up the side has it was something United could afford to do. Hussain Talat was the dominating partner on the other end. When Hales was eventually dismissed for a 42 ball 41, Islamabad needed 48 runs in 26 balls at 11.07 RPO.
In walks Asif Ali, the first ball he faced was the only dot ball he faced in his 10 ball innings. His second ball saw him smash a six of Shinwari to release the pressure. From the other end Hussain Talat also matched Asif to further reduce the asking rate. Talat’s dismissal though, still gave Karachi a glimmer of hope as Islamabad United were left to score 33 in 3 overs with 2 of those overs going to be bowled by Mohammad Amir, Karachi’s go to bowler in the death overs.
Amir began his penultimate over by conceding 5 runs in 4 balls and with equation being 28 runs in 14 balls, Faheem Ashraf did a good job to pick the slower ball and slap it over extra cover for a 6, the final ball of the over was a top edge which went for 4 runs. Those two crucial boundaries saw the equation read 18 runs in 12 balls.
Aamer Yamin was handed the 19th over, he induced a poor shot from Asif Ali off the first ball but Babar Azam dropped a skier. It was not what Karachi Kings would have wanted. Aamer Yamin though kept at it and saw only 4 runs come off the first 4 balls he bowled, the equation read 14 runs in 8 balls. A six straight down the ground changed that as it brought down the required run rate to a run a ball for the final over.
Islamabad United eventually ran away as victors with 3 balls to spare with Asif Ali finishing with a boundary. Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf and Hussain Talat combined scored 73 runs in 37 balls at 11.82 RPO which was much needed for side as they qualified for the 2nd Qualifier against Peshawar Zalmi.
The team dedicated the victory to Asif Ali’s daughter who has been unwell for a while. The Islamabad United franchise are truly behind Asif and all our thoughts are with her.