Back of the previous defeat, Peshawar and Multan will face each other to open their winning account in Pak T20 League 2021.
Match Timings: Feb 23, 7:30 PM IST
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Sunday’s Losing sides will face each other in Pak T20 League to find the first victory of the season. Mohammed Rizwan led Multan for the first time and suffered a close defeat to Islamabad. The skipper continued his top form and scored yet another half-century with fighting 71 off 53 balls. Apart from his heroics, no one showed intent against the tight bowling. Brathwaite played a short cameo off 22 off 14 balls to post 150 on board. The bowling unit put a better show in the second innings and got six wickets at the score of 76.
The game was in full control of Multan but Gregory played a spoilsport with a match-winning knock to chase down this total with one over spare. Multan had some positives from the defeats. Afridi picked two for 24 and also involved in a direct-throw run-out. Brathwaite also scalped two wickets, conceding just 23 in 4-overs. Multan also needs some improvement. They took control in middle-overs but allowed Gregory to get easy boundaries in flag-overs. The pace-attack looked problematic. The batting unit also needs a recheck. Only Rizwan stood hard in the first innings. Multan has the caliber to bounce back and they cannot afford back-to-back losses at the starting of the season.
Meanwhile, the same story was evolved in the case of Peshawar. Lahore edged past Peshawar by 4 wickets. After losing the crucial toss, Peshawar lost three wickets on 19 but Bopara rescued his side with a gritty half-century. Amad Butt also played a fine cameo of 23 off just 11 balls to get 140 in the first innings. Peshawar didn’t allow Lahore batsmen to get settled in the chase but require run-rate didn’t trouble them.
At one stage, Lahore required 32 off 26 balls with just 4 wickets in hand but Hafeez and Rashid crossed the line. Peshawar could have batted well in the first innings. The strike rate was also a big issue for them. Bopara couldn’t accelerate in flag-overs and Malik also scored with a strike rate of 100. Bowling unit had some positives and they fought hard to defend a low-total. Changes are unlikely to happen.
Possible Lineups & Current Form
Peshawar
Kamran Akmal (wk), Imam-ul-Haq, Haider Ali, Shoaib Malik, Ravi Bopara, Sherfane Rutherford, Amad Butt, Wahab Riaz (c), Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Saqib Mahmood, Mohammad Imran
Previous Match: Lost to Lahore by 4 wickets
Multan
Mohammad Rizwan (c & wk), Chris Lynn, James Vince, Sohaib Maqsood, Rilee Rossouw, Khushdil Shah, Shahid Afridi, Carlos Brathwaite, Sohail Tanvir, Mohammad Umar, Sohaibullah
Previous Match: Lost to Islamabad by 3 wickets
Key Players
Multan
Chris Lynn
Aus T20 League 2020-21 – 458 runs at an average of 35.23
Mohammad Rizwan
T20Is vs NZ & SA – 325 runs at an average of 65
Last match in Pak T20 League – 71 (53)
Peshawar
Liam Livingstone
Australia T20 League 2020-21- M: 14, Runs: 426, Avg: 30.42
Shoaib Malik
Last season – M: 9, Runs: 278, Avg: 34.75
