Karachi and Lahore square off in the final of Pakistan T20 League 2020 after a prominent display in their respective playoff games. Both sides beat table-topper Multan in their last playoff fixture to seal the maiden entry into the final.
Match Timings: Nov 17, 8:30 PM
Team Preview
Lahore joined Karachi for the title clash in National Stadium, Karachi, and this season, we will find a new winner in Pakistan T20 League. Lahore outclassed Peshawar in eliminator 1 and Multan in eliminator 2 to take the berth in the final. On the other hand, Karachi already grabbed the place in the final with a thrilling super over win against Multan. Pandemic affected the playoff sides as they missed their key players but these two sides have managed to pull off the things and found themselves in the final.
Lahore’s line up is pretty strong and they might stun Karachi to bag their first-ever title in the tournament. Mohammed Hafeez guided Lahore to home in the crunch chase against Peshawar and in the second game, David Wiese helped Lahore to make into the final of the season 2020 with an all-round display. Tamim and Fakhar both were in good touch with the bat. The pace trio Afridi, Dilbar Hussain, and Haris Rauf are effective as they produce breakthroughs at the right time.
Meanwhile, Karachi is boosted with its strong batting lineup, led by Babar Azam at the top. The collapse at the end put them at the scary line but Mohammed Amir rescued them in super over. Sharjeel and Babar in the opening slot will be crucial to give Karachi a good start. At one-down, they have Alex Hales who can accelerate the innings. Iftikhar Ahmed and Rutherford are providing a finishing end to their batting unit. The bowling department will be tested despite a compelling performance in the qualifier game. It a game between Karachi’s batting and Lahore’s bowling. The toss would play a major role due to a dew factor and Lahore have an upper hand on Tuesday night.
Pitch Report
National Stadium, Karachi is a pure batting wicket. We expect a high-scoring game in the final. The surface is a bit dry but the dew might help the chasing sides.
Possible XI
Karachi
Sharjeel Khan, Babar Azam, Alex Hales, Imad Wasim (c), Chadwick Walton (wk), Iftikhar Ahmed, Sherfane Rutherford, Wayne Parnell, Waqas Maqsood, Arshad Iqbal, Mohammad Amir
Lahore
Fakhar Zaman, Tamim Iqbal, Sohail Akhtar (c), Mohammad Hafeez, Ben Dunk (wk), Samit Patel, David Wiese, Muhammad Faizan, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Dilbar Hussain
Key Players
Lahore
Mohammed Hafeez
This season – M: 11, Runs: 310, Avg: 44.29, SR: 126.53
Shaheen Afridi
This season – M: 11, Wickets: 17, Avg: 17.71
Karachi
Babar Azam
This season – M: 11, Runs: 410, Avg: 51.25, SR: 123.49
Sharjeel Khan
National T20 Cup 2020 – M: 11, Runs: 233, SR: 122.63
