Twitter Reactions: Karachi Kings kick Islamabad United out of the tournament

Despite being a low-scoring affair, it did prove to be a tight game in the end as Karachi Kings huffed and puffed in their chase of 137. It was after a good bowling performance from them when they had restricted Islamabad United to a score that seemed below par. Moreover, it was a must-win game for Islamabad United. They did their best to win it but the Karachi Kings kept their cool to get over the line in the end.

Islamabad United scratch their way to 136

Like is the trend in most T20 games, Karachi Kings won the toss and sent Islamabad United into bat first who did get a decent start. Rizwan Hussain and Philip Salt did a good job before wickets started falling at regular intervals. The first to fall was Rizwan Hussain for 17 in the 5th over before Salt followed in the 8th over.

Each batsman walked in and got a start but none of them could convert it into a substantial knock. Hussain Talat was the top-scorer with 37 which he made off 30 balls. Moreover, the last 15 balls saw just 20 runs being scored. Hence, it was an under-par total that Islamabad United got. The Karachi Kings bowling attack shared the spoils and fired as a unit.

Sharjeel Khan sets the chase on fire once again

Sharjeel Khan who scored a quickfire half-century in the last game began the chase in style. He smoked the first ball of the innings for a six becoming the first-ever batsman to do that in the PSL. That set the tone as the left-handed opener went berserk and smashed a 14-ball 37 (three fours and four sixes) before departing. Babar Azam played the second fiddle’s role to perfection. Karachi Kings had raced away to 60 in just five overs.

A wobble and a slow-down in the middle before getting over the line in the final over

After a blazing start, Karachi Kings lost both their openers in successive overs. It was a real struggle for Cameron Delport and Imad Wasim who had promoted himself to No. 4. Delport scored a 24-ball 11 while Wasim recovered with a couple of good strikes to end with 26 off 34 balls. But Karachi slipped to 106/5 with 31 needed off 23 deliveries.

Chadwick Walton and Umaid Asif struck a couple of lusty blows each to take the team over the line. Karachi Kings hunted down 137 with four balls to spare and became the second team to qualify for the knockouts. Islamabad United became the first team to be knocked out in this tournament.

Here is how Twitterati reacted to Karachi’s win