MATCH REPORT
Follow UsOpeners Mohammad Rizwan (69 off 42 balls) and Shan Masood (83 off 50 balls) scored superb fifties as Multan Sultans pulled off the highest chase in Pakistan Super League (PSL) history against Lahore Qalandars on Saturday.
Chasing 207, the pair added 150 in 14.2 overs before Sultans lost a flurry of wickets. Khushdil Shah clubbed three sixes and a boundary in Haris Rauf's final over to take Sultans over the line with two balls remaining.
Put in to bat first at the Karachi National Stadium, Qalandars' openers Fakhar Zaman and Abdullah Shafique got off to a flier by adding 89 runs in 51 balls. Imran Tahir broke the partnership by removing Shafique. Zaman was the aggressor at the top as he smashed 11 boundaries and two sixes in his 35-ball 76 before being dismissed in the 12th over in Ihsanullah's bowling.
Kamran Ghulam carried on the onslaught with a 31-ball 43 as he was assisted by a cameo from Mohammad Hafeez (16 off 12) before departing in the 18th over. Rashid Khan (17 off 4) smashed two sixes and a boundary in the final over by Shahnawaz Dahani to take Qalandars past the 200-run mark.
Chasing a stiff total, Rizwan and Masood began with a four-run opening over from Shaheen Afridi, then upped their scoring rate. They squeezed 19 runs off Samit Patel's fifth over as Sultans galloped past 50 and went past 100 by the ninth over as Masood reached his fifty in 26 balls.
Rizwan, who became the first batter to score more than 2000 T20 runs in a calendar year in 2021, reached his second fifty off PSL 2022 in 28 balls. Rashid Khan finally broke the partnership when he foxed Masood in the 15th over.
Afridi soon got the wicket of Rizwan, but Sohaib Maqsood (20 off 17) kept the chase alive with two boundaries and two sixes. Qalandars narrowed down the chase to 16 off 6 balls when Afridi removed Tim David and Maqsood off consecutive deliveries.
However, Khushdil went ballistic in the final over to take Sultans to a record-breaking win and stay top of the six-team table.
Multans Sultans will next take on Quetta Gladiators on Monday while Qalandars will face off against Karachi Kings on Sunday.