KARACHI: A disciplined bowling effort backed by a measured knock from Mohammad Rizwan took Rawalpindiz over the line against Islamabad United in the 34th match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 here at the National Bank Stadium on Thursday.
Set 138, Pindiz — their first win in PSL, chased down the target inside 18 overs, losing four wickets in the process.
The innings started poorly as opener Abdullah Fazal was dismissed on the very first ball of the match for a duck. Ghulam and Rizwan then stabilized the innings with a calm partnership, easing the pressure as runs came easily.
Their partnership surpassed 50 runs and helped the team pass the half-century mark. However, the 78-run partnership ended when Chris Green took a wicket, dismissing Kamran Ghulam, who scored a good 42 off 30 balls, with five fours and one six.
Pindiz lost three wickets when Shadab Khan caught Rizwan, who fought hard for his 45 runs off 38 balls, including five fours and a six, leaving the team at 92-3 in 12.5 overs.
The pressure increased as sharp fielding from Shadab Khan led to Sam Billings being run out at the non-striker’s end for just two runs. Daryl Mitchell and Dian Forrester then led RawalPindiz to victory, with Mitchell remaining unbeaten on 32 off 25 balls, hitting two fours and a six, while Forrester added 13 runs to secure the win.
Earlier, Rawalpindiz decided to bowl first, which proved advantageous as they bundled out Islamabad for 137 in their 20 overs.
United had a cautious start, with openers Devon Conway and Sameer Minhas struggling to accelerate, resulting in a slow run rate early on.
Mohammad Amir struck in the second ball of the fifth over, dismissing Minhas for six off 11 balls and ending a 20-run opening partnership.
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Naseem Shah further weakened United during the powerplay by getting Mohammad Faiq out for five off six balls, leaving them at 29-2 after 5.5 overs. Saad Masood then took a wicket in the seventh over, dismissing Shadab Khan for just one run, and Islamabad fell to 30-3.
Conway and Mark Chapman built a crucial partnership that pushed the score beyond 50, but Daryl Mitchell ended the 49-run stand by dismissing Conway for 40 off 33 balls, including three fours and two sixes, bringing the score to 79-4 in 11.3 overs.
Asif Afridi quickly removed Chapman for 23 off 18 balls, and wickets kept falling as Haider Ali was dismissed for six off 13 balls by Saad Masood.
Amir returned to dismiss Faheem Ashraf for 11 off 12 balls, leaving Islamabad at 99-7 in 16.3 overs. Chris Green added a late push with 29 off 16 balls, including two fours and two sixes, but was run out in the final over.
Dian Forrester then finished the innings, taking the wickets of Mohammad Hasnain for a first-ball duck and Richard Gleeson, completing his second wicket.
READ: PSL 11: Mohammad Rizwan joins Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik in elite list