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Pakistan Super League (PSL) witnessed Multan Sultans taking on Islamabad United at the Multan cricket stadium on Tuesday, February 20. In a not-so-high-scoring game, Islamabad United fought till the end as the Sultans won the match to go top of the points table.
Multan are now one of the only two teams to win both matches they’ve played so far this season and boast a net run rate of 1.435. Quetta Gladiators are the other side to win two games in as many outings, but they are in second position with a net run rate of 0.635.
Meanwhile, Islamabad United, despite the loss, have stayed in third place. But their net run rate has reduced from 1.159 to 0.438. The remaining three teams - Lahore Qalandars, Peshawar Zalmi, and Karachi Kings - occupy the next three positions, respectively, with no wins to show for their efforts yet.
Among them, the Qalandars have played two matches and have lost both while Peshawar and Karachi have lost the only game they have played so far.
Multan Sultans chase down 145 to register second consecutive win
After opting to bowl first, Multan Sultans managed to restrict the Shadab Khan-led Islamabad United to 144 runs in their 20 overs. Abbas Afridi and Mohammad Ali were the star bowlers for Multan as the duo picked up three wickets each. On the other hand, Agha Salman and Jordan Cox were the top batters, scoring 52 and 41 runs, respectively.
The chase was straightforward for Multan Sultans even though they lost Dawid Malan for a duck, with Naseem Shah clean-bowling him. But their captain Mohammad Rizwan stitched together a vital partnership with Reeza Hendricks as they added 71 runs for the second wicket. The former scored 43 runs before getting out but Hendricks stood strong, scoring 58 runs to take his team close to the finishing line.
Eventually, the Multan Sultans chased down the target of 145 runs in the final over of the innings with five wickets in hand to register their second consecutive win of the ongoing PSL season.
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