Shaheen Afridi's Lahore Qalandars punished for ball-tampering before final over, Karachi Kings win thriller

Another controversy rocked the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2026. Shaheen Afridi-led Lahore Qalandars were penalised five runs before the final over of the match for tampering with the ball. The evidence of ball-tampering is yet to be provided but the on-field umpires slapped Afridi’s team with a five-run penalty. Instead of 14 runs, Haris Rauf was tasked to defend nine overs which he couldn’t as Karachi Kings won the low-scoring encounter by four wickets with three balls to spare.

Afridi’s twin double strikes keep Kings grounded 

In the run chase of 129, Qalandars got off to a horrible start. In the third over, skipper David Warner and Salman Agha lost their wickets to Afridi. Only a few boundaries were scored in the powerplay overs. Qalandars had 27/2 after six overs. In the eighth over, Mustafizur Rahman was introduced into the attack and he delivered with Saad Baig's wicket. He scored 19 runs from 21 balls. At the halfway stage, Qalandars were 50/3.

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Waseem tried to break the shackles, targeting Rauf. The UAE skipper hit him for a four and first six of the innings. The 18-run over brought down the required run rate. Afridi came back into the act and struck twice. Waseem departed for a 37-ball 38. Moeen Ali's catch was dropped but he couldn't make use of it and departed two balls later for a 21-ball 18. After almost three boundaryless overs, Azam Khan hit Rauf for a four. In the penultimate over, Mustafizur conceded nine runs, including a boundary.

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Ball-tampering leads to loss

Before the final over, Afridi, Fakhar Zaman and Rauf were having a discussion. The on-field umpires spotted something and asked for the ball. After examining the ball, they slapped the home team with a five-run penalty. Also, they have the batters the choice to pick the ball. After the ball change, Rauf got the wicket of Khushdil Shah. Rauf followed it up with a wide. Then, Abbas Afridi hit Rauf for a four and a six to finish off the run chase with three balls to spare.

Qalandars suffer collapse in slog overs 

Earlier, Qalandars won the toss and opted to bat first. Moeen got Zaman stumped in the first over. Mohammad Naeem hit the first six of the innings. Abdullah Shafique hit a couple of boundaries off Hasan Ali. In the fourth over, Mir Hamza got rid of Naeem for a 12-ball 13. After powerplay overs, Qalandars were 42/2. Adam Zampa was introduced into the attack and he got the breakthrough in the form of Shafique who scored 33 runs from 24 balls. In the next over, Agha managed to get Parvez Hossain out lbw for a run-a-ball 12. At the hallway stage, Qalandars were 69/4.

Sikandar Raza hit Moeen for a monstrous 100-metre six. In the next over, Hasbeebullah Khan hit Abbas for a four and a six. With 104/4 after 14 overs, Qalandars looked set for a big score. But, they suffered a collapse. First, Raza was dismissed by Abbas for a 21-ball 19. Shaheen hit a six before falling to Moeen. Not a single boundary was scored in the last four overs. Zampa got Usama Mir, Hasan knocked over Hasbeeulah for a 30-ball 28 whereas Rauf was dismissed for a 10-ball 4 by Hamza. Kings restricted Qalandars for 128/9.

Shaheen on ball-tampering penalty