Imad Wasim starred with the ball as Islamabad United took one step closer to the PSL 2024 final by defeating Quetta Gladiators in the first eliminator. Left-arm spinner Imad Wasim claimed 3-12 on the back of brilliant powerplay bowling as Islamabad United sunk Quetta Gladiators and advanced in the Pakistan Super League playoffs on Friday.
Imad Wasim inspires United to step up as Gladiators crash out of HBL PSL 9 . Islamabad United will join Peshawar Zalmi in the second eliminator after they beat Quetta Gladiators by 39 runs at National Bank Stadium, Karachi on Friday night. Islamabad scored 174-9 in the first innings, which they comfortably defended as Quetta was dismissed for just 135.
Pitch and Toss
Islamabad United and Quetta Gladiators square off in the Eliminator 1 match of PSL 2024. The clash takes place on Friday, March 15 at National Cricket Stadium in Karachi. Islamabad United lost to Quetta Gladiators by 3 wickets during the PSL 2024 clash.
Led by Shadab Khan, Islamabad United won 5 games and lost 4 matches in PSL 2024 during the league stage. With 11 points, they took the 3rd spot in the points table to reach playoffs. Led by Rilee Rossouw, Quetta Gladiators also won 5 matches and lost 4 out of 10 during the league stage. They ended in the 4th spot in the points table to qualify for playoffs.
The National Stadium in Karachi is a high-scoring ground. The average 1st innings total at the stadium is 181 while the average 2nd innings total is 148. The stadium has witnessed 14 games so far. The team batting first won 8 games while the team batting second won 6 matches. However, the pitch conditions will favor batters. National Stadium in Karachi is a high-scoring ground and the team with a better batting show will dominate in the match.
Shadab Khan skipper of Islamabad United won the toss and elected to bat . One change was made in the squad as injured Colin Munro was replaced by Martín Guptill in the squad.
Quetta Gladiators bowls first with no changes to their squad.
Martin Guptill and Alex Hales gives strong start to IU in the powerplay.
After opting to bat first, Martin Guptill and Alex Hales put up a 51-run opening partnership, giving Islamabad a strong start. After seeing off Mohammad Amir’s first over for just two runs, Guptill hit three consecutive fours against Mohammad Wasim Jnr in the second over to get things going for the side.
Hales (23, 20b, 1×4, 2x6s) hit two maximums against Abrar Ahmed in the fifth over but was caught by Jason Roy off Akeal Hossein in the following over as Islamabad ended the powerplay at 51-1. Mohammad Amir gave Quetta a good start with the ball which was soon nullified by Martin Guptill in the second over when he hit a hat-trick of boundaries. Abrar Ahmed was then hammered for two sixes in a single over by Alex Hales
Earlier, Martin Guptill made 56 on a two-paced pitch in his first game of the season. Guptill featured in two half-century stands with Alex Hales (23) and Agha Salman (31).
Quetta Gladiators bowlers fightbacks to restrict Islamabad United to 174.
Akeal Hossein at the other end kept things tight and ended up dismissing the Englishman at the same time. After a lull, Guptill and Agha Salman went on a boundary spree to put Islamabad in a very strong position at the halfway mark.
Even after Salman’s dismissal, Shadab Khan chipped in with a cameo and Azam Khan came out firing on all cylinders smashing two sixes and a four in his 6-ball 18. But these two failing to kick on made a difference as Islamabad ended up posting only 174 on the board as a result of a flurry of wickets at the end despite Guptill’s fifty.
After the seventh and eighth overs passed quietly, Salman Ali Agha took charge against Wasim in the ninth over, hitting a four and six. By the halfway mark, Islamabad stood at 93-1.
Saud Shakeel’s introduction to the attack in the 12th over proved fruitful as he broke the 51-run partnership by dismissing Salman (31, 21b, 2x4s, 1×6). Shadab Khan walked in next and hit a quickfire 23 off 13, including one four and two sixes, before he fell to Abrar, with the scorecard reading 131-3 after 15 overs.
Guptill got his 56th T20 half-century with a four on the fifth delivery of the 16th over. In the next over, Azam Khan (18, 6b, 1×4, 2x6s) hit two sixes and a four before Hossein avenged himself on the last ball.
Islamabad lost four wickets in the 18th and 19th overs; Faheem Ashraf was caught behind off Amir while Haider Ali was run out on the next delivery. Then, Imad Wasim was run out courtesy of an excellent aim at the striker’s end by Wasim. Subsequently, Guptill (56, 47b, 5x4s, 1×6) sent one straight to Roy fielding at long-on.
Amir, bowling the final over, castled Hunain Shah on the second delivery. Naseem Shah hit a six on the last ball of the innings to help Islamabad finish with a comfortable total of 174-9 after 20 overs. Amir and Hossein had two wickets each while Saud, Wasim and Abrar picked up one each.
Horror start for Quetta Gladiators as Imad Wasim wrecks batting in the powerplay with 3 -12 .
The total of 174 proved to be more than enough eventually as Imad Wasim took charge in the powerplay. The left-arm spinner struck in the first over of the chase by removing Shakeel for a five-ball duck. Two balls later, Jason Roy edged Naseem Shah behind to the slip cordon. Quetta lost three wickets in three overs when Imad slowed the pace again on a surface that was aiding spin and Rilee Rossouw perished after failing to get a clean connection.
Imad Wasim then capped off a brilliant spell in the powerplay by bagging another wicket which was immediately followed by a run out that stunned the batting side. At 16/5, there was no way back for Quetta.
Quetta Gladiators had a horror start to the chase as they lost half their wickets inside of the powerplay, whilst in pursuit of 175-run target on the tricky Karachi pitch.
Imad Wasim, who opened the bowling for Islamabad, drew first blood with opening batter Saud caught behind for a five-ball duck on the final ball of the first over. On the second ball of the second over, Roy edged one to Faheem fielding at first slip and had to join his fellow opener back in the pavilion for just a run off three deliveries.
Rilee Rossouw announced himself on the crease with a boundary on his first ball, facing Naseem. However, he could not maintain his stay at the crease and was caught by Haider at deep square in the third over, awarding Imad Wasim his second wicket of the day.
Continuing his disappointing tally of scores at HBL PSL 9, the Quetta captain returned for a run-a-ball five. Then, Imad Wasim returned to bowl his third over and continued his lethal attack on the Quetta batting line-up. Nafay (5, 10b, 1×4), the fifth batter in, fell on the second delivery as the substitute fielder Qasim Akram grabbed a brilliant catch at short mid-off. On the subsequent ball, Evans was run out for a duck as trouble deepened for Quetta who found themselves 21-5 after five overs.
Omair Hossein struck a valiant 50 but Imad Wasim’s powerplay display helped Islamabad United skittle Quetta Gladiators for 135.
Omair Yousuf, who was watching the procession from one end, managed to score a half-century and Quetta also had the likes of Hossein and Amir chip in with valuable cameos filled with boundaries. But those blows by Imad Wasim in the powerplay had done enough damage as the chasing side fell short quite comfortably in the end.
Omair Yousuf’s fighting 50 wasn’t enough to overcome the damage inflicted in the first six overs by Imad Wasim, whose three wickets helped to reduce Quetta to 16 for 5.Saud Shakeel gloved a leg-side catch to wicketkeeper Azam Khan in the first over; captain Rilee Rossouw was caught at deep square leg; and Khawaja Nafay offered a tame catch at mid-off.
Jason Roy’s woeful season with the bat ended without joy when he was caught at first slip on 1 off Naseem Shah, and Laurie Evans was run out in a mix-up with Akeal Hossein as Quetta lost half of its side in the powerplay.
Omair Bin Yousuf, who had witnessed his team’s batting collapse from the other end, was then joined in the middle by Hossein. The two batted together to add 52 runs off 34 balls, providing Quetta’s innings with a sense of stability as the side managed to get to 67-5 at the halfway mark.
The sixth-wicket stand was cut short in the 11th over when Hossein (31, 18b, 2x4s, 3x6s) was run out after confusion in the middle. Subsequently, a languid 17-run seventh-wicket stand between Omair and Wasim (6, 10b) followed until the latter fell to Faheem in the 14th over.
Amir walked into bat with Gladiators requiring 90 from 40 balls. . He hit a dexterous 23 off 14, on the back of four boundaries and a six, attempting to keep Quetta in the game, despite the mounting pressure. The 20-ball 41-run eighth-wicket stand was eventually broken when Amir fell to Obed McCoy in the 17th over.
Omair completed his second HBL PSL half-century (50, 37b, 4x4s, 1×6) before Faheem caught him at deep midwicket to award Naseem his second wicket. Hunain rattled Abrar’s stumps in the penultimate over to finish the game, as Islamabad cruised to Eliminator 2, scheduled to be played on 16 March at National Bank Stadium at 9pm.
Imad Wasim was the pick of the bowlers for Islamabad, returning with three wickets for just 12 runs in his four overs. Naseem had two wickets while Faheem, Hunain and McCoy had one each.
