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Multan Sultans carried on their successful Pakistan Super League 2022 campaign, thrashing Quetta Gladiators by 117-run margin on February 18.
Sultans made a jaw-dropping score of 245 for three in their 20 overs and dismissed Gladiators for just 128 in a piece of complete domination in Lahore.
Their top 3 batted in spectacular fashion. Opening pair of Shan Masood (57 off 38) and Mohammad Rizwan (83* of 54) added 119 runs for the first wicket before Masood’s departure brought an in-form Riley Rossouw to the crease.
This is when Sultans took the game completely away from Gladiators because of Rossouw’s outstanding 71 off just 26 balls, including nine fours and four sixes. The South African offered the opposition no respite and made them chase the leather to all parts of the Gaddafi Stadium.
Gladiators found no one to put a stop to the Sultans’ assault. That meant excessive pressure on their batters in the second half. Jason Roy (38 off 19) at the top and Umar Akmal (50 off 23) were the only Gladiators batters to put some pressure back on the opposition.
Eventually, with Shahnawaz Dahani (2/22) and Khushdil Shah (2/17) ending with impressive figures, Sultans dismissed Gladiators for just 128 and secured their playoffs berth.
Brief scores
Multan Sultans 245/3 in 20 overs (Rizwan 83*, Rossouw 71; Irfan 1/28) beat Quetta Gladiators 128/10 in 15.5 overs (Akmal 50, Roy 38; Shah 2/17) by 117 runs
In the second match of the double-header day, Karachi Kings finally ended their painfully long eight-match losing streak, coming out on top versus Lahore Qalandars. Kings made an impressive feast of a low-scoring fixture, successfully defending a total of 149.
They struggled in the first half, but somehow, useful contributions from skipper Babar Azam (39 off 32), Qasim Akram (26 off 18) and a timely cameo from Lewis Gregory (28 off 16) allowed Kings to inch closer to the 150-mark despite Khan duo Zaman and Rashid’s four-fers for Qalandars.
They thankfully found more bowling heroes on the day, with Mir Hamza leading the pack after his crucial four-fer (4/27). Chris Jordan bagged figures of two for 23, while Imad Wasim delivered a miserly spell of one for 23.
Qalandars’ otherwise in-form batting unit failed on the night, with 33 off 24 from Mohammad Hafeez being their highest individual score. Only David Wiese with his 23-ball 31 provided some fight among the rest as they finished 127/9 in their 20 overs.
Brief scores
Karachi Kings 149/10 in 19.5 overs (Azam 39; Zaman Khan 4/16, Rashid Khan 4/17) beat Lahore Qalandars 127/9 in 20 overs (Hafeez 33, Wiese 31; Hamza 4/27) by 22 runs
Pakistan Super League 7 points table
| # | Team | Matches played | NRR | Points |
| 1 | Multan Sultans | 9 | 1.226 | 16 |
| 2 | Lahore Qalandars | 8 | 0.543 | 10 |
| 3 | Peshawar Zalmi | 9 | -0.381 | 10 |
| 4 | Islamabad United | 8 | 0.536 | 8 |
| 5 | Quetta Gladiators | 9 | -0.917 | 6 |
| 6 | Karachi Kings | 9 | -0.862 | 2 |
