Colin Munro and Azam Khan were at their destructive best as Islamabad United sink Karachi Kings in match four of the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
The New Zealand international scored 58 off 28 deliveries while the wicketkeeper-batter scored 44 facing the same number of balls to hand United a four-wicket victory at the National Bank Cricket Arena.
The duo made a 31-ball 59 partnership for the fourth wicket to take the game away from the home side.
Munro struck four maximums and five boundaries in his blistering knock, while Azam provided the finishing touches to the innings by hitting six fours and a six.
They were well supported by Rassie van der Dussen, who scored 31 off 25.
Tom Curran, who didn’t have the best outing with the ball, make up for that with a quick three-ball 10 to finish things in style as United scored 178/6 in 18.2 overs in reply to Kings’ 174-run target.
Kings enjoyed early success with the wickets of Hasan Nawaz (7) and Paul Stirling (7).
However, United replied back with force thanks to Munro and Dussen at the crease. The duo made a 59-run stand of 31 deliveries when United needed them the most.
Mohammad Amir and Musa Khan ended up with two wickets each for Karachi Kings.
Haider Ali scored a magnificent half-century to help Kings reach 173/7 on a difficult batting track.
After losing the toss, Karachi Kings were put under immense pressure thanks to an in-swinging delivery from Rumman Raees, which went through James Vince’s defense.
With just five runs on the scoreboard, Haider Ali and Sharjeel Khan threw the counter punch with a 77-run stand for the second wicket.
First, Haider made his intentions clear by smashing Faheem Ashraf for a boundary. Then Sharjeel got himself into the grove by hitting Mohammad Wasim jr. for his first boundary.
The right-hander, who played for Peshawar Zalmi last year, then struck Tom Curran for back-to-back boundaries, while Sharjeel deposited him on the square leg for the first maxim of the innings.
At the end of the powerplay, Karachi Kings reached 55/1 with Sharjeel batting on 28 and Haider not out on 18.
Faheem and captain Shadab Khan bowled two economical overs to stop the run flow.
However, in the ninth over, Haider again took charge of the proceeding by hitting Faheem for his fourth boundary. In, Shabab’s follow-up over, He deposited the United captain straight down the ground for a maximum and slog-swept for a four.
Their 77-run partnership came to an end in the 11th over of the innings, when Colin Munro took a stunning catch to send the left-hander back to the hut.
However, it didn’t stop Haider for scoring runs, as he smashed Shadab for a maximum and a four on successive deliveries to complete his half-century.
Haider was eventually removed by Faheem after scoring 59 off 45 deliveries.
Mathew Wade and Shoaib Malik scored 18 each as Karachi Kings ended up scoring 173/7 in their 20 overs.
This is the second defeat for the Karachi Kings, who finished last in the last season.
Islamabad United: Hassan Nawaz, Paul Stirling, Colin Munro, Rassie Van der Dussen, Shadab Khan (capt), Azam Khan (wk), Asif Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Tom Curran, Wasim Jr, and Rumman Raees.
Karachi Kings: Sharjeel Khan, James Vince, Mathew Wade (wk), Haider Ali, Shoaib Malik, Imad Wasim (C), James Fuller, Irfan Khan Niazi, Mohammad Amir, Andrew Tye, and Musa Khan.
