Karachi Kings Being Outclassed by Islamabad United at their Home Ground

Muhammad Waqas

Karachi Kings: 165/5 (20) | Pollard 48*(28), Irfan 27*(22) | Agha 1/17, Imad 1/20 

Islamabad United: 169/3 (18.3) | Munro 82(47), Hales 47(35) | Nawaz 1/23, Shamsi 1/34

A disappointing start to their home fixtures for Karachi Kings as Islamabad United dominates with a much-needed win.

Colin Munro and Alex Hales put together a 108-run opening stand in 69 balls

Chasing a target of 166, Islamabad United’s opening pair of Colin Munro and Alex Hales came out with all guns blazing. The duo completely took apart Karachi’s bowling attack, putting together a 108-run stand in just 69 balls. Hales set the tone with 47 runs off 35 balls, including seven boundaries before falling against Hasan Ali in the 12^th over. Munro continued the onslaught with his blistering 82 runs off a mere 47 balls, including a hat-trick of sixes against Tabraiz Shamsi.

Despite Kings’ efforts to stage a comeback through a couple of wickets, Agha Salman and Shadab Khan comfortably finished the game in the 19^th over. Agha scored an unbeaten 25 off 17, while Shadab Khan remained 10 not out, before Islamabad won by seven wickets. 

For Karachi Kings, Mohammad Nawaz finished with impressive figures1/23 (4), while Shamsi and Hasan Ali took one wicket each too.

Earlier, Islamabad United’s decision to elect the field after winning the toss bore fruits. Karachi Kings’ innings got off to a shaky start as Imad Wasim struck early to dismiss Tim Seifert for jut 8 runs, leaving the hosts struggling at 17/1 in the third over. However, captain Shan Masood and Leus du Plooy injected some momentum into the innings by adding 40 runs, before Plooy departed after scoring 24 runs in 15 deliveries. The captain made a good effort to anchor the innings but failed to accelerate as Hunain Shah’s cracking yorker ends up his innings of 27 runs in 30 balls.   

At 89/5 after 13 overs, Karachi found themselves in a precarious position. However, Kieron Pollard and Mohammad Irfan Niazi drove Kings to a remarkable with an unbeaten 76-run sixth-wicket partnership. Pollard’s 48 runs off 28 balls, supported by Irfan’s 27 off 22, propelled Karachi Kings to a respectable total.             

For Islamabad United, Imad Wasim, Naseem Shah, Agha Salman, and Hunain Shah dismissed one batter each.

Turning Point:

The match progressed without a decisive turning point, as the relentless partnership between Colin Munro and Alex Hales left Karachi Kings unable to contend.