The 7th match of the ongoing Pakistan Super League will see Quetta Gladiators square off against Multan Sultans at the National Stadium in Karachi.
After having suffered a 5-five wicket defeat at the hands of Peshawar Zalmi in their tournament opener, the Sarfaraz Ahmed-led Gladiators came back strongly in their previous fixture as they thumped a lacklustre Karachi Kings outfit to claim their maiden points of the competition.
Gladiators had a tough night with the ball against Zalmi as they failed to defend 190 but it was the same bowling attack that set up their eight-wicket win over Karachi.
Veteran seamer Sohail Tanvir gave his side the perfect start when he knocked over the dangerous Sharjeel Khan for a 9-ball 10 and keeper Joe Clarke. Mohammad Hasnain got rid of his Pakistani skipper Babar Azam before Naseem Shah (5/20 in 3.3 overs) entered the scene and wiped out Karachi's middle order to claim a five-wicket haul.
The target of 114 was never going to bother Quetta given the form of their opening duo Ahsan Ali (57* off 30 deliveries) and Will Smeed (30 off 35 deliveries). Just like their first game, the duo gave a solid start to their side by stitching a 76-run stand in 11.2 overs.
Ahsan and Smeed have scored the bulk of runs for Quetta thus far and they will once again be the key to their sides' fortunes. Sarfaraz, on the other hand, will hope that he has his fellow middle-order batsmen rise to the occasion if the openers struggle to give them a good start.
It won't be easy though given the fact that they will be up against a red-hot Multan unit, which would be gunning for its third consecutive win of the season.
The Mohammad Rizwan-led unit has shown both facets of their game in their first two matches of the season.
While it was their bowling-unit-led by Imran Tahir which set the ball rolling for a 7-wicket win over Karachi, they flexed their muscles with the bat against Lahore with Shan Masood (83 off 50 deliveries) and skipper Rizwan (69 off 42 deliveries) leading the way during the run-chase of 207.
Can Rizwan pull one up over his former Pakistan captain, or will Sarfaraz prevail?
Match Details - Quetta Gladiators vs Multan Sultan, PSL 2022
Date: 31st January 2022
Time: 8 PM IST
Venue: National Stadium, Karachi
Broadcast: Sony Six, Sony Six HD, SonyLiV app and website
Pitch Report
Each of the six games thus far in PSL 2022 have favoured the sides' batting second. In the last two matches, Islamabad United and Lahore Qalandars chased down 169 and 171 respectively without breaking a sweat. It's a no brainer for captains. Win the toss and field first is the order of the tournament.
Squads:
Quetta Gladiators:
Sarfaraz Ahmed (C & WK), Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Jason Roy, James Faulkner, Umar Akmal, James Vince, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Shahid Afridi, Sohail Tanvir, Ben Duckett, Khurram Shehzad, Abdul Wahid Bangalzai, Muhammad Ashar Qureshi, Noor Ahmad, Ahsan Ali, Luke Wood
Multan Sultans:
Mohammad Rizwan (C & WK), Tim David, Shan Masood, Rilee Rossouw, Johnson Charles, Imran Tahir, Sohaib Maqsood, Khushdil Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Rumman Raees, Asif Afridi, Anwar Ali, Imran Khan Snr, Amir Azmat, Blessing Muzarabani, Ihsanullah, David Willey, Rizwan Hussain
Probable Playing XI:
Quetta Gladiators:
Ahsan Ali, Will Smeed, Ben Duckett, Sarfaraz Ahmed (C & WK), Iftikhar Ahmed, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Hasnain, James Faulkner, Naseem Shah, Ashir Qureshi
Multan Sultans:
Shan Masood, Mohammad Rizwan (C & WK), Sohaib Maqsood, Rilee Rossouw, Tim David, Khushdil Shah, David Willey, Imran Khan, Shahnawaz Dahani, Imran Tahir, Ihsanullah
CE Fantasy XI:
Mohammad Rizwan (C & WK), Shan Masood, Will Sameed, Ahsan Ali, Tim David, David Willey, Mohammad Nawaz, Sohail Tanvir, Imran Tahir, Naseem Shah
Captain: Mohammad Rizwan
Vice captain: Ahsan Ali