PSL: Karachi make it to the knockout stage

Karachi Kings defeated Quetta Gladiators by 14 runs to cement a spot in the playoffs, whereas Lahore Qalandars have been eliminated from the PSL 2021. 

Lahore were once at the top of the bottom, but four losses in a row hampered their goal.

They ended up with the same number of points (10) as Karachi, but ended up in fifth place due to low net run rate.

Danish Aziz accelerates at death

Karachi Kings had resorted to defensive style with the bat after losing their set batsmen in short intervals.

They were looking to finish somewhere near the 150-mark until Danish Aziz walked in.

The left-hander struck 33 runs in the 19th over off Jack Wildermuth.

He struck four clean sixes before falling for a 13-ball 45 in the final over.

His Man of the Match innings helped the Kings reach a fighting total of 176/7.

Martin Guptill remains clueless

Despite losing out his place in the Indian Premier League this year, there was a lot of talk about New Zealand hard-hitter Martin Guptill.

The Kiwi then signed for the Pakistan Super League and he was expected to shut his critics with top performances in the Dubai leg.

However, things only nosedived for the top-order batsman.

Guptill failed miserably for the Kings in his maiden PSL season.

Being picked in the replacement draft, the Kiwi was expected to add to the firepower of Sharjeel Khan and Babar Azam at the top, but he consistently failed to build on good starts.

He played only one knock of 40 odd runs in the season, which speaks volumes of his form slump.

The Kings management kept backing the Kiwi star at number 3, but he did not turn up with his batting.

Nonetheless, Guptill’s series of failures may pave the way for some bench player to have a go in the playoffs.

Arish Khan spins the Kings batsmen away

Emerging player Arish Ali Khan enjoyed a dream outing in his maiden PSL game.

The 20-year-old grabbed a four-for against the Kings as he sent Sharjeel Khan, Martin Guptill, Najibullah Zadran and Imad Wasim back to the hut.

His 4-28 helped the Gladiators contain the Kings until the 19th over where, as Sarfaraz Ahmed put it, the entire game’s effort went in vain.

Hassan Khan can strike hard and long

Quetta Gladiators have another youngster up their sleeves who is emerging as a great middle-order hitter.

All-rounder Hassan Khan looked threatening during his 24 before his luck ran out and he was dismissed via an unusual runout.

Mohammad Amir barely got his fingers to the ball when on-strike Sarfaraz Ahmed struck a straight drive that rattled the wicket.

When the Quetta skipper was struggling to strike cleanly, Hassan was making it seem like a piece of cake.

The 22-year-old can be the solution to Quetta’s batting woes in the next season if he is given ample opportunity to prosper.

This will also end the Gladiators’ reliance on Azam Khan, who has been rather inconsistent with the bat.