LAHORE: Islamabad United captain Shadab Khan admitted that Hyderabad Kingsmen are a worthy side in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 final following his side’s narrow loss to the debutants in the Eliminator 2 match at the Gaddafi Stadium on Friday.
Batting first, Kingsmen scored 186 for 5 in 20 overs thanks to a century-plus partnership from Usman Khan and Gusal Perera.
The duo put on 101 runs for the fifth wicket to take the Kingsmen from 85/4 in 11.2 overs to 186/5 in 20 overs. Usman dominated the crucial position and finished with an unbeaten 61 off 30 balls with 10 fours as their highest score.
In turn, United could amass 184/7 in their 20 overs despite a concerted effort from their batting unit, losing by two runs.
Reflecting on his team’s performance in the high-stakes tournament, Shadab expressed disappointment at their elimination but insisted the Kingsmen deserved to play well.
“Yes, it’s sad that we didn’t make it to the final, but the team that played well deserves to be in the final,” Shadab said in the post-match presentation.
The all-rounder insisted that their death bowling was a concern as they were bowled out for 15 runs extra, which was unique in the end.
“Death bowling was a concern and I think we conceded 10 to 15 extra runs,” asserted Shadab.
With only 6 runs needed in the final over, United set out to chase down a target of 187 runs.
“We lost wickets at crucial times. I think I should have batted a bit better and picked up the pace. Every time we got some pace, we lost a wicket,” Shadab said.
“It was a mind game and maybe read the situation a bit better at the end. It was a good match for us,” he added.
One of the positives for the three-time champions in the eight-team tournament was the rise of emerging opener Sameer Minhas, who finished with 349 runs in 11 innings at an average of 38.77, earning him the praise of his captain Shadab.
He praised United’s spin bowling trio of Imad Wasim and Chris Green for bowling brilliantly throughout the match.
“We know Sameer is an exceptional talent and it’s remarkable that he’s performing at this level,” Shadab said.
“Our three spinners bowled well throughout the match.”