Islamabad United clinch thriller in PSL's first Super Over

Andre Russell and his Islamabad United teammates celebrate after defeating the Lahore Qalandars in the Super Over. -Muhammad Sajjad

Another night and yet another thriller. And this one certainly wasn't for the faint-hearted.
Islamabad United pulled off a heist right from under the nose of the Lahore Qalandars in one of the most thrilling matches of the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL), in the wee hours of Saturday morning.
The Lahore Qalandars were within handshaking distance of their first win this season after Islamabad United had flirted with the lowest total of this edition but did end up with the third lowest with 121 for 9.
But some tidy bowling and fielding from Islamabad United meant the Qalandars made an absolute mess of the chase, but just about managed to push the game into a Super Over.
And in what was the first ever Super Over in three editions of the PSL, Andre Russell smoked a boundary and a six off consecutive balls, well past midnight, to pull off the unlikeliest of wins, after the Lahore Qalandars had made 15 for one.
The fans, who were left a tad disappointed because of the wash-out in the first game between the Karachi Kings and the Multan Sultans at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, were treated to a classic on the night.
The agony continued for the Lahore Qalandars, who are yet to break the duck and end their drought across four matches this season and six games stretching back to last season.
Earlier, it was a delayed start to the game with it starting half an hour late owing to the damp spots on the ground because of the rain earlier.
Lahore Qalandars captain Brendon McCullum called right at the toss and put the onus on Islamabad United to set a target.
Islamabad United tinkered with their line-up, making three changes to the team that had played against the Quetta Gladiators the other night in Sharjah.
Opener Chadwick Walton, pacer Steven Finn and the injured Rumman Raees, were left out and in came opener Shahzada Farhan, Andre Russell and Samit Patel.
McCullum opted for spin to open the bowling and it was a dream start for the Lahore Qalandars with left-arm spinner Fakhar Zaman having opener Luke Ronchi castled, off the second ball of the match.
Islamabad United were one down for no score and were soon to lose their second wicket, with Shahzada Farhan being gobbled up by Sunil Narine off Sohail Khan, while trying to capitalise on the powerplay.
Even as JP Duminy tried to atone for his slow scoring rate the other night, it was getting worse for Islamabad United with captain Misbah-ul-Haq fishing at Salman Irshad, the pacer with the Lasith Malinga action, and Samit Patel becoming Yasir Shah's first of three victims.
And as Sarfraz Ahmed, the Quetta Gladiators captain, had said the other night that the quality bowling had indeed improved in this edition of the PSL.
It was the bowlers who held sway with leg spinner Shah pinching three wickets, those of Patel, Asif Ali and Duminy.
It was clearly going haywire for Islamabad United despite Duminy's 36-ball 34, coming in at one down. Andre Russell and Hussain Talat embarked on a damage limitation exercise after Islamabad United were left floundering at 70 for 6.
Russell had stroked a 12-ball 15 with one six over the stands, but a mix up saw him run out and back into the dug-out in anger after Talat had committed to a run before pulling out.
Talat did make amends for that with 33 from 21 balls with two sixes and a boundary as Islamabad United just about managed 121 for 9.
The Multan Sultans take on the Quetta Gladiators in the first match on Saturday, while Peshawar Zalmi meet the Lahore Qalandars in the night's other fixture.
Brief scores:
Islamabad United: 121 for 9 in 20 overs (JP Duminy 34, Hussain Talat 33, Asif Ali 16, Yasir Shah 3-20, Sohail Khan 2-23) beat Lahore Qalandars: 121 all out in 19.4 overs (Agha Salman 48, Brendon McCullum 34, Samit Patel 3-17, Mohammad Sami 3-21) in Super Over.
james@khaleejtimes.com