KARACHI: Hyderabad Kingsmen chased down a target of 189 runs to beat Karachi Kings by four wickets in the 20th match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) at the National Bank Stadium on Saturday.
The win came in Kingsmen’s first PSL appearance after four consecutive defeats against Lahore Qalandars, Quetta Gladiators, Multan Sultans and Peshawar Zalmi.
Their skipper Marnus Labuschagne smashed 26 off 10 balls until the Hyderabad Kingsmen fell to Khushtil Shah in the third over with 36 runs to spare.
Wicketkeeper batsman Usman Khan joined opener Mas Sadaq and the duo kept the momentum going with a 30-ball 60.
Sadaqat top scored for Kingsmen with 37 off 29 balls with 4 fours and 2 sixes while Usman scored 27 off 13 balls with 3 fours and 2 sixes.
Their back-to-back dismissals sparked a collapse that saw the Kingsmen lose two more wickets of Saim Ayub (six) and Glenn Maxwell (two) to be reduced to 112/5 in 11.4 overs.
No. 7 batsman Irfan then took charge of the Kingsmen’s chase and shared a crucial 27-run partnership for the sixth wicket with Kusal Perera, who contributed 17 runs off 14 balls.
Irfan was then joined by Hasan Khan in the middle and the duo displayed nerves of steel to propel the Kingsmen to a much-desired victory with an unbeaten 50-run partnership in the final over.
Hasan dominated the match-winning partnership by contributing 33 off 16 balls, while Irfan remained unbeaten on 29 off 20 balls.
Kings bowlers Abbas Afridi took 2 wickets for 30 runs in his four overs, while Hasan Ali, Khushdil Shah, Adam Jamba and Salman Ali Agha took one wicket each.
Kingsmen skipper Marnus Labuschagne’s decision to field first backfired as the home side piled up 188/8 in 20 overs.
However, Kings started their innings badly as they lost Reeza Hendricks (two) in the first over for just 2 runs.
Following an early stumble, Salman Ali Agha (24) joined Muhammad Wasim in the middle and the duo batted smartly to put on a crucial 45-run partnership for the second wicket.
Hunain struck again in his next over, with Wasim caught lbw as the Kings slumped to 59/3 in 7.2 overs after 25 off 19 balls.
Following successive dismissals, youngsters Saad Baig and Azam Khan took charge of the Kings’ batting and added valuable runs in the middle to anchor a 69-run partnership for the fourth wicket.
Kingsmen skipper Labuschagne broke the growing stand in his first over as he dismissed Assam for 26 off 19 balls with the help of two sixes and a four.
However, his dismissal turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the Kings as it paved the way for stand-in skipper Moeen Ali to walk out to bat at No. 6 and the left-handed batsman turned the game around with a belligerent attack.
The left-handed batsman smashed 44 off just 16 balls, hitting five sixes and a four before falling to Muhammad Ali in the last over.
Baig, on the other hand, reached his maiden PSL half-century in the same over and top-scored with 53 off 37 balls with 6 fours.
Hunain was the standout bowler for the Kingsmen as he claimed three wickets for just 19 runs in his four overs, Ali claimed two wickets while Labuschagne took one wicket.