KARACHI: Defending champions Lahore Qalandars crashed out of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 in the eight-team 39th match at the National Bank Stadium on Sunday after a resounding win over Hyderabad Kingsmen Rawalpindis.
The Kingsmen’s 108-run win over the Bindies took their tally to 10 points from 10 matches and helped them qualify for the playoffs by pipping Kulanders, who had more points but a lower net run rate, to finish fourth.
The Qalandars, who stunned leaders Peshawar Zalmi in their last league-level match on Saturday, will need the Kingsmen to lose the final against Rawalpindis or not win by a huge margin, initially estimated at around 85 runs, to boost their playoff hopes.
The Kingsmen, meanwhile, came out all guns blazing in the high-stakes match, amassing a huge total of 244/6 in their 20 overs against the bottom-placed Bindis to give their bowlers a cushion to clinch the much-needed victory.
They were led by experienced all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, who scored a top-scoring 70 off 37 balls, while Gusal Perera (54 not out) and Usman Khan (50) also chipped in with brisk half-centuries.
The Kingsmen then needed to restrict the Bindis to 158 or less and their bowlers came up with a solid platform put up by the batsmen to bowl out the Bindis for 136 and set up a highly-rewarding 108-run win for the Kingsmen.
The Kingsmen’s contenders for Eliminator 1 at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on April 29 will be decided after the last league-level match between Islamabad United and Multan Sultans.