Danish Aziz’s 13-ball 45 helped Karachi Kings to beat Quetta Gladiators by 14 runs in Match 29 of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2021 at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi.
The victory guaranteed Imad Wasim’s men a Playoffs berth. With five wins and as many defeats, they finished fourth in the points table, edging out Lahore Qalandars on net run rate. Quetta remained at the bottom, with two wins.
Earlier, Sharjeel Khan (45 off 34) and Babar Azam (23 off 25) forged a 71-run opening stand but both of them struggled for fluency against spin. Sensing turn, Quetta used only spinners – Abdul Nasir (1-15), Hassan Khan and Arish Ali Khan (4-28) – between the sixth and 17 overs. Karachi scored 83 runs from these 12 overs, losing five wickets.
They were 136/5 after 18 overs. Then, in the 19th over, Danish smashed 32 off Jack Wildermuth to turn the fortune in their favour. Naseem Shah, supposed to bowl that over, hobbled out of the ground after taking the ball.
Danish began with an inside edge for four. He then hit four sixes off the next four balls. The last ball also went for four. Chadwick Walton (34* off 27) took eight from the final over to take Karachi to 176/7.
Coming to the chase, Jake Weatherald (25 off 24) and Saim Ayub (19 off 15) never quite challenged the Karachi bowlers. Usman Khan (15 off 13) and Azam Khan (15 off 12) did not last either. Sarfraz Ahmed (51* of 33) and Hassan (24 off 15) tried, but the other Quetta batters adopted a safe approach, and they managed only 162/6.
Mohammad Ilyas returned 3-39 and Arshad Iqbal 2-39. Noor Ahmad, who was adjudged Player of the Match in Karachi’s last encounter against Lahore with figures of 4-0-19-2, remained wicketless.
Brief Scores
Karachi Kings 176/7 in 20 overs (Danish 45; Arish 4-28) beat Quetta Gladiators 162/6 in 20 overs (Sarfraz 51*; Ilyas 3-39) by 14 runs. Player of the Match: Danish Aziz.