Multan Sultans became the first team in PSL 2022 to successfully defend their total as they defeated Quetta Gladiators by 6 runs. Sultans registered their third consecutive victory in the tournament and extended their lead at the top of the PSL points table. Quetta too maintained their third spot in the points table despite losing their second match in the competition.
Multan got off to a decent start on a slow pitch at National Stadium Karachi. Opener Shan Masood played yet another splendid knock as he guided his team throughout their innings. Masood scored 88 and a late flurry from Tim David and Khushdil Shah helped Multan to a decent total of 174/4.
Quetta too got off to a similar start with Ben Duckett guiding them along with the required run rate. Imran Tahir and Khushdil Shah choked the Gladiators in the middle phase of the innings by picking up quick wickets back to back. Iftikhar Ahmed staged an amazing comeback but his efforts went down the drain as he lost his wicket to David Wiley. Multan’s bowlers hung on and an exceptional spell by Willey helped them win their third successive match.
Shan Masood was named as player of the match for his magnificent innings of 88 runs of 58 balls. His innings included 6 fours and 4 sixes.
Pre-match
Defending champions Multan Sultans will face Quetta Gladiators in the seventh match of the PSL 2022 on Monday, 31 January. The match, scheduled at Karachi’s National Stadium, will start at 7:30 pm PST.
Match Preview
Multan Sultans will be determined to continue their magnificent winning run against a rejuvenated Quetta Gladiators. Multan sits at the top of the PSL points table after winning their first two matches of the tournament. Multan registered the highest run-chase in PSL history in their previous outing as they defeated Lahore Qalandars by 5 wickets. Sultans look like the team to beat in the tournament as they possess one of the most balanced and well-settled sides in the tournament.
Similarly, Gladiators have had a solid start to their campaign as well. They lost a close encounter against Peshawar Zalmi in their first match and then went on to register a massive victory over Karachi Kings. With a host of international stars bound to come back to their squad, Sarfaraz’s side looks like a real force this season. Sarfaraz will be hoping that his bowlers can pull off a similar performance in this match and get rid of Multan’s exceptional top order early on in the game.
Multan vs Quetta promises to be a cracker of a game and both the teams are expected to name an unchanged XI.
Match Details
- Date Monday, 31 January 2022
- Time 07:30 pm PKT
- Venue National Stadium Karachi
- Live Stream LINK
Check out the details of the match here.
Possible Playing XIs:
Multan Possible XI – Mohammad Rizwan (c)(wk), Shan Masood, Sohaib Maqsood, Rilee Rossouw, Khushdil Shah, Tim David, David Willey, Imran Tahir, Imran Khan Sr., Shahnawaz Dahani, Ihsanullah
Check out Multan’s full squad here
Quetta Possible XI – Sarfaraz Ahmed (c)(wk), Will Smeed, Ahsan Ali, Ben Duckett, Iftikhar Ahmed, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Hasnain, James Faulkner, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Ashir Qureshi
Check out Quetta’s full squad here
Head to Head
Overall, the two sides have come face to face 7 times in the tournament. Gladiators have an upper hand as they have won 4 while Sultans have won 3. They last faced each other on 16 June 2021 in Abu Dhabi which Multan won by 110 runs
X-Factor
Opener Shan Masood has re-invented himself as a quality T20 opener and Multan will be hoping that he continues his rich vein of form throughout the tournament. Shan played a scintillating knock in the previous match and was named player of the match for his outstanding performance. Shan’s exceptional form along with Rizwan at the top of the order has been one of the major factors behind Multan’s early success in the tournament.
Young pace sensation, Naseem Shah was magnificent for Quetta in their previous match. The fiery young pacer took a five-wicket haul as he guided Quetta to their first win of the campaign. Quetta will be looking towards Naseem to provide early breakthroughs against Multan and rattle their strong top order. One of the brightest young talents in the world will be determined to put on a show and earn a call-up to the national team once again.
I have Urdu speaker friends and I was shocked to hear that they actually support Quetta Gladiators rather than Karachi Kings as QD is led by an Urdu speaker and they just hate Babar because of his ethnicity. That is why Stadium was empty during Karachi kings matches and now today the stadium was absolutely full. I have no idea that why most of Urdu speakers think in such a narrow minded Ethnic Manner and hate Punjabis that much. So please grow up.