Islamabad United secured victory in PSL season 9 by defeating Multan Sultans with just 2 wickets to spare in a tense match held at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi this Monday.
Under the leadership of Shadab Khan, Islamabad clinched their third PSL title, adding to their previous triumphs in 2016 and 2018, making them the most successful team in the history of the tournament.
On the flip side, Multan Sultans, led by Muhammad Rizwan, suffered their third consecutive loss in the finals. Previously, they were defeated by Lahore Qalanders in the 2022 and 2023 finals.
Islamabad United chased down the target of 160 runs on the final delivery of their innings, losing eight wickets in the process.
The match came down to the wire as Hunain Shah, facing the last ball with just one run needed, intelligently found a gap and smashed a boundary for four runs.
Islamabad had a shaky start, losing three wickets in the powerplay and reaching 55-3. However, Martin Guptill and Azam Khan steadied the innings with a crucial 47-run partnership.
Guptill’s run-out at 50 runs off 32 balls caused a setback, leaving Islamabad at 102-4. Imad Wasim and Naseem Shah then contributed valuable runs lower down the order, scoring 19 and 17 runs respectively.
In Multan Sultans’ innings, Mohammad Rizwan was initially dismissed by Naseem Shah but was given a reprieve due to the bowler overstepping.
Imad Wasim’s early strikes removed the dangerous Yasir Khan and David Willey. Despite Rizwan’s fifty, Multan struggled to build momentum, with wickets falling regularly.
Though it seemed unlikely, Iftikhar’s aggressive batting towards the end helped Multan post a competitive total, with him scoring 32 runs off just 20 balls.
Imad Wasim’s five-wicket haul for Islamabad marked a historic achievement in the PSL final.
(Islamabad51_Newsdesk)
