KARACHI: Debutants Hyderabad Kingsmen thrashed three-time champions Islamabad United by six wickets in the 11th match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) at the National Bank Stadium on Sunday.
Despite valiant performances from New Zealand pair Devon Conway and Mark Chapman, Kingsmen skipper Marnes Labuschagne opted to bat first as his side’s bowling restricted United to 153/9 in 20 overs.
Conway top-scored with 45 off 31 balls with 7 boundaries, while Chapman scored 42 off 30 balls.
Apart from them, only Samir Minhas (22) and Mohammad Faiq (18) managed to score double figures against the Kingsmen bowling attack led by debutant Asif Mehmood, who claimed four wickets.
Mehmood was supported by fellow fast bowler Muhammad Ali with two wickets and Glenn Maxwell with one.
In turn, Labuschagne’s unbeaten half-century saw the Kingsmen easily chase down the target of 154 runs with 4 wickets and 11 balls to spare.
The skipper returned after top-scoring with 61 runs off 53 balls with 6 fours to keep an eye on the Kingsmen throughout.
He was supported by fellow top-order batsmen Mas Sadaq and Saim Ayub with brisk 30 and 35 runs respectively, before he shared a match-winning partnership with compatriot Glenn Maxwell, who scored an unbeaten 21 off nine balls.
Stand-in captain Chris Green and Faheem Ashraf took 2 wickets each for United.
The six-wicket win marked the Kingsmen’s second in a row and improved their net run rate, lifting defending champions Lahore Qalandars to sixth in the PSL 11 standings.
| Teams | Competitions | succeeds | Losses | No results | points | Net flow rate |
| Peshawar Salmi | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 3.103 |
| Sultans of Multan | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0.941 |
| Islamabad United | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 1.363 |
| Kings of Karachi | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | -1.395 |
| Quetta Gladiators | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0.456 |
| Hyderabad Kingsmen | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 4 | -0.808 |
| Lahore Colleagues | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | -0.863 |
| Rawalpindi’s | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | -1.864 |
Islamabad United, on the other hand, are at the third position despite losing seven points after six matches. 2017 champions Peshawar Zalmi are at the top with nine points and Multan Sultans are second with eight points.
Karachi Kings are fourth with six points from five games, ahead of the previous edition’s runner-up, Quetta Gladiators, with four matches from four matches.
Meanwhile, another debutant Rawalpindi is at rock bottom as he is yet to register a win after five matches.