man-of-the-Match Shahid Afridi (right) celebratges a Lahore Qalandars wicket with his Karachi Kings teammates.
Dubai - Qalndars have won only five matches in the tournament in last three seasons
Published: Tue 27 Feb 2018, 8:52 AM
Updated: Wed 28 Feb 2018, 1:39 AM
A percentage shot can make or break a game. On Monday night at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Lahore Qalandars realised that two reverse sweep attempts derailed their victory chase, which was on a cruise control, to hand over Karachi Kings their third win in as many matches in the third edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
At 70 for 1 in seventh over, the Lahore team looked like getting past the victory target of 160 without much ado. Qalandars skipper Brendon McCullum (44, 30 balls, five 4s, two 6s) was in complete control with Fakhar Zaman. Then they lost both the batsmen in quick succession, which triggered a steady queue back to the hutch. The left-handed Pakistani star was the first to risk his wicket by playing a well-executed reverse sweep but Ravi Bopara dived to his left and took a low catch at point
Three balls later McCullum also committed hara-kiri. He tried to reverse sweep Imad Wasim's delivery pitched on the off stump but the skipper completely missed it. His decision to review umpire's lbw ruling did not work and the Kiwi started his walk back slowly.
The rest of the Lahore batsmen, however, seemed to be in a hurry to show their backs to a large number of Kings supporters at the Ring of Fire. They needed to score 88 runs in 78 balls with eight wickets in hand, no big deal for any team in T20 format. The team that has lowest percentage of defensive shots in the tournament so far, however, did not execute a sensible plan. They went bang-bang on a sluggish wicket rather than putting their heads down to accumulate runs by running between the wickets.
Umar Akmal was the first Qalandars batsman to show a rush of blood when he jumped out of his crease to leg spinner Shahid Afridi only to be foxed and for keeper Mohammed Rizwan to whip off the bails for an easy stumping. After that, Lahore kept losing wickets at a regular interval and fell 27 runs short of target.
Earlier, opting to bat first on a new track, Karachi Kings were helped to 159 by a clever Ravi Bopara (50 not out, 34 balls, two 4s, two 6s) knock on a new sluggish track that had more brownish tinge rather than greenish squares used for the first four days. The stripe looked slightly on a slower side that helped quality spinners in the Lahore ranks to derail a decent Karachi start.
The Lahore tweakers did well to throttle Karachi by claiming three wickets for the same score of 36 after Joe Denley (28, 14 balls, five 4s, one 6) had tackled the new ball bowlers with ease in the six overs of power play. He was particularly severe on Shaheen Afridi. Denely had hit Pakistan's u19 World Cup star for 13 runs in his first over as he hit the teen pacer for possibly the longest six of the tournament so far by sending the ball as far as 104 metres into the top tier over midwicket.
Lahore seemed to have wrested control with three quick wickets. However, in shortest format of the game an over can change the course of a match. And, the Qalandars pacers dished out two bad overs to let the only unbeaten team (Kings) to get away to a fighting total at this venue this season.
The Qalandars seamers leaked 64 runs in the last five overs as Bopara spoiled teenage pacer Shaheen Afridi's figures by taking 18 runs in the 20th over and Sohail Khan, despite taking two wickets in the 17th over, conceded 18.
Kings went past the tape thanks to Bopara's well-paced innings and some brilliant catching, including a diving catch by Joe Denely at backward point that would have made Jonty Rhodes proud. Denesh Ramdin slashed at an awful Mohammed Irfan Junior delivery and the English fielder dived to his right to grab a scorcher while he was parallel to the ground.
That catch summed up the contrasting spirits in the two camps. Karachi Kings kept their unbeaten record and Lahore's wretched show in the PSL continued. Qalndars have won only five matches in 19 they have played in the tournament in last three seasons.
sunilvaidya@khaleejtimes.com
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