PSL 2020
Karachi seal qualification, Islamabad crash out
Statesman Report
KARACHI: Karachi Kings on Saturday qualified for the semi-finals of the PSL 2020 with a slim, four-wicket win over Islamabad United, who crashed out of the tournament with the defeat.
Having been set a paltry 137-run target, Karachi were off to a blistering start courtesy their star openers Babar Azam and Sharjeel Khan (60-run partnership) but then both disappeared within a span of few balls.
A little later a middle-order collapse ensued which made the routine looking run chase needlessly difficult. In the end, it needed a couple of boundaries from Umaid Wasim to get the port city side home, and through to the semis.
Earlier, Islamabad, missing several of its regular foreign stars, struggled on the National Stadium wicket and in front of empty stands, mustering just 136-6, with Hussain Talat top-scoring with 37.
Playing XIs Karachi: Imad Wasim (c), Babar Azam, Sharjeel Khan, Cameron Delport, Chadwick Walton, Usama Mir, Mohammad Amir, Umaid Asif, Chris Jordan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Arshad Iqbal
Islamabad: Rizwan Hussain, Phil Salt, Hussain Talat, CA Ingram, Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Muhammad Musa, Shadab Khan (c), Rumman Raees, Zafar Gohar, Akif Javed.