Rawalpindiz finally registered their first-ever HBL PSL win, beating Islamabad United by six wickets while chasing 138 with 11 balls to spare.
After opting to bowl first, they restricted United to 137, with Mohammad Amir, Saad Masood and Dian Forrester taking two wickets each.
In reply, Kamran Ghulam and Mohammad Rizwan gave them a strong start with a 78-run stand, scoring 45 and 42 respectively. Daryl Mitchell then played a steady hand with an unbeaten 32 to guide the chase in 18.1 overs.
The win ends the debutants’ eight-match losing streak, as they finally get off the mark in their ninth game.
There was a brief wobble in the chase when Ghulam and Kamran fell within a span of 14 runs, dismissed by Chris Green and Shadab Khan, leaving the side at 92-3 in 12.5 overs.
United pushed back further when Sam Billings was run out for just two, thanks to sharp fielding from Shadab, with the score at 99.
However, Mitchell and Dian Forrester held their nerve and saw the team through. Mitchell remained unbeaten on 32 off 25 balls, hitting two fours and a six, while Forrester added 13 to seal the win.
For United, Shadab Khan was the most economical, finishing with 1-18, while Imad Wasim and Chris Green picked up a wicket each.
First innings
Bowling first, the Pindiz looked a much different side as they took wickets at regular intervals, never allowing the United batters to stitch strong partnerships, eventually rattling them out for 137 in 20 overs.
The openers, Devon Conway and Sameer Minhas, struggled to accelerate from the outset, with runs coming at a slow pace in the early overs.
In the fifth over, Mohammad Amir made the breakthrough by dismissing Minhas for 6 off 11 balls, ending the 20-run opening partnership.
United slipped when Naseem Shah removed Mohammad Faiq for five, leaving Islamabad at 29-2 after 5.5 overs. In the seventh over Saad Masood dismissed Shadab Khan for just one and leaving United in trouble at 30-3.
Devon Conway and Mark Chapman tried to steady things with a useful stand, taking the score past 50 and briefly halting the slide.
Their 49-run partnership was broken by Daryl Mitchell, who dismissed Conway for a fighting 40 off 33 balls, as Islamabad slipped to 79-4 in 11.3 overs.
Asif Afridi further dented the innings by trapping Chapman lbw for 23 off 18, which included a four and a six.
Haider Ali managed just six off 13 balls before becoming Saad Masood’s second victim of the spell.
Mohammad Amir then returned to strike, removing Faheem Ashraf for 11 off 12 deliveries and leaving United reeling at 99-7 in 16.3 overs. After Chris Green’s run out for 29 in the final over, the other two batters also fell in the next three balls as United were bowled out for 137.
Comments
See what people are discussing