After a pandemic induced break of eight months, Pakistan Super League was back with a bang with the first contest between Multan and Karachi going to a super-over while Qalandars triumphed over an experienced Peshawar Zalmi outfit.
The table-toppers Multan Sultan did suffer a close defeat but time and time during the game showed why they are pretty strong force. First with the bat, they managed to post 141 after being reduced to 40 for 4. Then with the ball, they made a miraculous comeback to take 4 wickets for six runs to take the game to a super over.
Multan made some silly mistakes with the bat, especially two run-outs of captain Shan Masood and Rilee Rossouw that put them behind in the game. They will be looking to not repeat those mistakes in this game. Their middle order looks settled with the likes of Bopara and Khushdil Shah.
With the ball they will be looking at the experienced Sohail Tanvir, who bagged three wickets in the qualifier to almost win the game for them. He will be ably supported by veteran Imran Tahir who was also miserly in his spell. Sultans do have the experience in their bowling department but they do have some old legs and to play back and back games of such intesity might be a difficult ask for them.
Lahore will be looking to build on the momentum and deliver a similar kind of performance that they gave against Zalmi. Their bowling attack comprising of young speedsters will be looking to exploit the vulnerability in Multan’s openers. With the bat, they will be relying on Muhammad Hafeez and Ben Dunk. At the top, they have experience in Tamim Iqbal and Fakhar Zaman.
It will be interesting to see whether the team who wins the toss will like to chase with due factor in mind or will go with the usual mantra of putting a score on the board in a high-pressure game.
Head to Head
Both teams have come up against each other six times in the history of the tournament with both sides winning three a piece. In the on-going season both sides have won a game against each other.
With both teams looking t make it to their first final we have another grueling contest on our hand.
