In the 30th match of the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL), elimination-bound Karachi Kings stunned table-toppers Lahore Qalandars by a massive margin of 86 runs at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on March 13 (Sunday). Despite registering a resounding victory, Karachi bowed out of the competition after finishing fifth on the points table with just three wins in 10 matches. Lahore, on the flip side, ended the league stage as the best team in the tournament after winning seven out of their 10 matches.
Chasing a daunting target of 197 runs, Lahore's batting line-up suffered an odd collapse as Hussain Talat (25 runs off 25 balls) was the top-scorer for the side. In-form Fakhar Zaman could only score 13 runs off 11 balls as the Kings' bowlers dominated the proceedings and maintained their stranglehold. As a result, Lahore were bundled out for just 110 runs in 18.5 overs.
All Karachi bowlers were bagged at least a wicket each. Captain Imad Wasim, Akif Javed, Mohammad Umar and Imran Tahir bagged a couple of wickets each while James Fuller chipped in with one wicket.
Earlier, Karachi had won the toss and elected to bat first. Imad's decision turned out to be a good one as wicketkeeper-batter Muhammad Akhlaq (51 runs off 33 balls) and Tayyab Tahir (40 runs off 23 balls) combined for a 70-run partnership for the second wicket and set the platform for the big-hitters.
Imad (45 runs off 31 balls) and Ben Cutting (33 runs off 14 balls) stitched a 52-run stand for the fifth wicket and propelled the team's total to 196/7 in 20 overs.
For Lahore, Zaman Khan, Haris Rauf and Hussain Talat bagged two wickets each while Dilbar Hussain chipped in with one wicket.
Lahore will now square off against Multan Sultans in qualifier 1 on March 15 (Wednesday) and winner of that game will directly qualify for the final.
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