Twitter Reactions: Babar Azam stars with the bat as Karachi Kings beat Lahore Qalandars to seal maiden PSL title

Karachi Kings’ captain Babar Azam continued his red-hot form and starred with the bat again to power his side to its maiden Pakistan Super League (PSL) title on Tuesday (November 17). Playing their first-ever PSL final, Karachi Kings beat fellow first-time finalists Lahore Qalandars by five wickets to clinch the title.

Lahore Qalandars sprung a surprise by deciding to bat first after winning the toss. It was the first time a side opted to bat first in PSL 2020 playoffs. Moreover, three of the first four PSL finals were won by the chasing sides but the Qalandars decided to bat first in the game. They, however, failed to justify their decision and could only manage 134 for 7 in the stipulated 20 overs.

Openers Fakhar Zaman and Tamim Iqbal could not give their team the start they would have wanted. The duo did add 68 runs for the first wicket but they came off 61 balls. And just when the Qalandars would have wanted them to go big, they holed out off Umaid Asif in the 11th over. From thereon, Qalandars kept losing at regular intervals.

They lost seven wickets for 50 runs as their innings never got the impetus. Tamim’s 38-ball 35 was the top-score for the Lahore-based outfit. For Karachi, Waqas Maqsood, Asif and Arshad Iqbal picked up two wickets apiece.

The chase

Lahore Qalandars needed something special to defend the modest total but failed largely because of Babar Azam. The Pakistan captain scored an unbeaten fifty to take his team over the line with the utmost ease. Karachi Kings chased down the 135-run target with eight balls remaining and five wickets in hand. Babar set the tone for the chase by hitting a  couple of boundaries off Shaheen Shah Afridi in the first over and didn’t look back.

Qalandars might have fancied their chances after they dismissed Sharjeel Khan (13) and Alex Hales (11) cheaply to reduce Karachi to 49 for 2. However, Babar ensured that his team always remained on the front foot in the chase. A 61-run stand between him and Chadwick Walton for the third wicket all but put the Qalandars out of the game.

Karachi lost three quick wickets towards the end but it didn’t hurt them much as they went on to win their first title with ease. Babar remained unbeaten on 63 off 49 balls. For Qalandars, Haris Rauf and Dilbar Hussain picked two wickets apiece.

Here are the best tweets on Karachi Kings’ victory