Islamabad United defeated Quetta Gladiators by 39 runs in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 9 at the National Bank Stadium, Karachi, to join Peshawar Zalmi in the virtual semi-final.
Earlier on the day, Shadab Khan won the toss and elected to bat first.
IU had a new pair as Martin Guptill and Alex Hales came out to open; experienced Mohammad Amir got the new ball. After settling on the crease, Guptill hit Mohammad Wasim for three consecutive boundaries in the second over.
Leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed was hit for two maximum’s by Hales in the 5th over which propelled IU’s innings. Caribbean spinner Akeal Hosein picked Hales wicket in the 6th over as he skied a shortish delivery to Jason Roy at long-on; powerplay ended with United 51/1.
Wasim was hammered for 17, while Usman Tariq was hit for 14 runs in the 9th and 10th over; the mid-point came with Islamabad standing at 93/1. Jason Roy grabbed his second catch of the night to dismiss Salman, 31, in the 12th over; IU stood at 102/2.
Shadab, 23, played a cameo before skying a delivery from Abrar which ended in Khawaja Nafay’s hands; Islamabad reached 131/3 after 15 overs. Having opened the innings, Guptill completed his half-century in the 16th over.
Azam Khan’s power-hitting skills came to the fore before he was bowled by Akeal on the last ball of the 17th over. Faheem Ashraf’s stay at the crease was short-lived; his fall resulted in IU standing at 158/5. Haider Ali followed Faheem on the next ball, as he was run-out by a throw from Nafay.
Imad Wasim was caught lacking in the penultimate over, as Mohammad Wasim’s kick resulted in Imad getting run-out for 4.
Roy held onto his third catch of the night, as Guptill perished for 56 on the last ball of the 19th over. Amir clean-bowled youngster Hunain Shah to claim his 2nd wicket in the last over.
Islamabad ended up at 174/9 as Naseem Shah hit a maximum on the last ball of the innings.
Amir, 4-0-20-2, impressed the most while Akeal Husein, 4-0-34-2, and Abrar Ahmed, 4-0-32-1, bowled satisfactory in the middle-overs.
Jason Roy and Saud Shakeel came out to bat, while Imad Wasim was handed the new ball. The left-arm spinner bared fruit in the first over as Saud was caught for a duck.
Islamabad dominated the powerplay as Quetta were reeling at 23/5 at the end of the 6 overs. Saud, Roy, Rilee Rossouw, Nafay and Laurie Evans were back in the dugout.
Akeal Hosein and Omair bin Yousuf stabilized the chase as QG reached 67/5 in 10 overs, but Akeal had to go back due to a miscommunication between the two which resulted in his run-out in the 11th over.
Wasim Junior lost his wicket in the 14th over as Faheem bowled him out for 6; QG reached 104/7 in 15. Amir’s entertaining cameo came to an end in the 17th over as QG reached 126/8.
Omair brought his 50 up in the 18th over, as he single-handedly tried to complete the chase. His wicket fell two balls later, as QG’s chase was all but over.
Quetta got all-out on 135, as Islamabad qualified for the Eliminator #2 set to take place on March 16.
Imad, 4-0-12-3, was the most impressive bowler while Naseem, 4-0-33-2, took crucial wickets. Obed McCoy, 3-0-13-1, had a splendid outing as well.
Imad Wasim was adjudged as the Player of the Match for his imposing powerplay bowling.
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