Afridi’s magic helps Karachi finally tame Quetta

DUBAI: After two painful seasons and four straight defeats, Karachi Kings opened their HBL Pakistan Super League account against Quetta Gladiators on a victorious note here at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Friday.

The first of double header produced a riveting battle of attrition between two teams who had experienced contrast fortunes in the past two years but Imad Wasim’s charges brought joy to the country’s biggest city with a workmanlike 19-run success.

There was no shortage of drama either as 18 wickets were lost for 279 runs in front of a half-filled stadium which was expecting a decent turnout in the evening fixture between Multan Sultans and Lahore Qalandars.

After both captains got their wishes answered when Imad chose to bat first after Sarfraz Ahmed lost the toss, Karachi cashed in on Quetta’s lack of aggression during the 150-run chase.

The highlight, undoubtedly, was not about Karachi finally cornering Quetta but Shahid Afridi’s great presence of mind in holding a brilliant catch.

Umar Amin, the top scorer with a run-a-ball 31, almost cleared the long on region in the 13th over when Afridi flung out his right hand to poach the ball before realising the momentum would carry him beyond the boundary line. But the 37-year-old was quick to flick the ball in the air long enough to get back in to complete the catch.

Afridi’s phenomenal contribution in the field doubled up a tidy spell that fetched the retired Pakistan skipper the scalp of current national team leader Sarfraz, who was gracious enough to admit playing close to 30 dot deliveries cost his franchise after the bowlers had their bits to curtail Karachi to a score which was manageable for Quetta.

It wasn’t just Afridi but a collective team show from Karachi. Colin Ingram repaid the faith shown in his ability by Mickey Arthur, the Pakistan and Karachi head coach, as the former South African left-hander brought much-needed stability to the innings in the middle overs.

Ingram, later named man-of-the-match, blasted five fours and two sixes in scoring a 21-ball 41 after Khurram Manzoor marked his belated PSL debut by contributing a 39-ball 35 upfront.

Karachi were poised for a sizeable tally but Quetta rallied brilliantly through Shane Watson. The ex-Australian all-rounder picked up the wickets of Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan and Mohammad Irfan in the space of four balls of his final over to end up with excellent analysis of 3-22. But his bowling heroics were not enough for the two-time runners-up to get over the line.