RAWALPINDI: The opening clash of the HBL Pakistan Super League 2020 here produced a riveting encounter between defending champions Quetta Gladiators against two-time Islamabad United in front of one of the noisiest crowds at the Pindi Cricket Stadium on Thursday night.

Chasing188, Quetta handed Islamabad their second defeat in the space of one week, after launching the fifth edition with a three-wicket success in Karachi. This time their hero was the discarded Australian all-rounder Ben Cutting, who used his bat like a sledgehammer to bludgeoned successive sixes over long-on off Amad Butt to give Quetta their seventh victory in 11 head-to-head meetings against Islamabad.

Cutting, the obvious choice as the man-of-the-match, thrashed 42 of the 57-run partnership in just 28 deliveries with Mohammad Nawaz (25 off 20 balls, three boundaries), while finishing on 42 off mere 17 balls with the aid of four sixes and two boundaries to bring down curtains on the entertainment for the evening, that yielded a remarkable 19 sixes — including a dozen of them in the Islamabad innings — and 32 fours.

The vibrant atmosphere set the tone nicely for the remaining seven matches scheduled in this old-fashioned garrison town, and despite talks of rains disrupting the games on Friday and Saturday, there is no lack of support for the PSL jamboree, similar to what was the case in Multan on Wednesday.

The pitch in Rawalpindi was couldn’t have been more perfect for the T20 stuff as the ball came nicely onto the bat, much to the delight to the huge turnout who collectively celebrated each happening with the same zeal as the one before. And although it was the ‘home’ game for Islamabad, the Quetta boys received almost equal treatment from the knowledgeable cricketing buffs — the majority of whom, overwhelmingly, were the young generation — who were treated to dazzling batting, notably from overseas stars Colin Ingram and Jason Roy.

Upfront Islamabad United — who were, predictably enough, put into bat by Sarfraz Ahmed — squandered a wonderful opportunity to post total beyond 200, which was definitely on when Shadab Khan and Ingram were adding 76 in 47 deliveries after the two-time winners stuttered at the top, losing three wickets upfront while reaching 57 from the mandatory Powerplay overs.

Shadab, promoting himself to No. 4, was reprieved twice off the luckless fast bowler Mohammad Hasnain after Colin Munro had made a 20-ball 31 (three sixes and two fours) at the top.

Shadab scored 39 off 25 balls (three fours and two sixes) while Ingram ended up contributing a 40-ball 63, featuring six fours and two sixes. Naseem Shah continued his growth as decent T20 bowler with the key scalps of Luke Ronchi (110 and Dawid Malan (10) in another incisive spell of energetic bowling with the new ball.

Quetta’s other major run-getters were Roy, who hammered a 38-ball 50 9six fours and two sixes) and Sarfraz, who hit up a vital 33 off 20 (five boundaries) during a crucial phase before perishing to the first ball after Islamabad took their compulsory ‘strategic time-out’ after the conclusion of the 15th over.

Scoreboard

ISLAMABAD UNITED

Batsmen & mode of dismissals R B 4s 6s SR

L. Ronchi b Naseem 11 4 1 1 275.00

C. Munro c Shehzad b Hasnain 31 20 2 3 155.00

D.J. Malan b Naseem 10 9 0 1 111.11

Shadab Khan c Nawaz b Cutting 39 25 3 2 156.00

C.A. Ingram not out 63 41 6 2 153.65

Asif Ali c Roy b Mills 15 10 0 2 150.00

Faheem Ashraf run out 4 4 1 0 100.00

Amad Butt c Sarfraz b Mills 6 4 0 1 150.00

Ahmed Safi Abdullah not out 1 5 0 0 20.00

EXTRAS (LB-3, W-3, NB-1) 7

TOTAL (for seven wkts, 20 overs) 187

FALL OF WKTS: 1-11 (Ronchi, 1.1 ov), 2-36 (Malan, 3.6 ov), 3-56 (Munro, 5.2 ov), 4-132 (Shadab, 13.4 ov), 5-157 (Asif, 15.6 ov), 6-161 (Faheem, 16.4 ov), 7-169 (Amad, 17.4 ov).

DID NOT BAT: Rumman Raees Khan, Mohammad Musa Khan.

BOWLING: Sohail Khan 4-0-42-0; Naseem Shah 4-0-23-2 (1w); Mills 4-0-34-2 (1nb, 1w); Mohammad Hasnain 3-0-33-1 (1w); Mohammad Nawaz 2-0-18-0; Cutting 3-0-34-1.

QUETTA GLADIATORS

Batsmen & mode of dismissals R B 4s 6s SR

J.J. Roy c Asif b Ahmed Safi Abdullah 50 38 6 2 131.57

S.R. Watson c Malan b Faheem 9 8 2 0 112.50

Ahmed Shehzad st Ronchi b Shadab 12 0 2 5 240.00

Azam Khan b Ahmed Safi Abdullah 10 11 1 0 90.90

Sarfraz Ahmed b Faheem 33 20 5 0 165.00

Mohammad Nawaz not out 25 20 3 0 125.00

B.C.J. Cutting not out 42 17 2 4 242.05

EXTRAS (LB-5, W-3, NB-1) 9

TOTAL (for five wkts, 19.4 overs) 190

FALL OF WKTS: 1-41 (Watson, 4.6 ov), 2-63 (Shehzad, 6.6 ov), 3-79 (Azam, 9.4 ov), 4-102 (Roy, 11.2 ov), 5-133 (Sarfraz, 15.1 ov).

DID NOT BAT: Sohail Khan, T.S. Mills, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah.

BOWLING: Rumman Raees Khan 4-0-34-0 (1nb, 2w); Mohammad Musa Khan 3-0-24-0; Faheem Ashraf 4-0-46-2; Shadab Khan 3-0-33-1 (1w); Ahmed Safi Abdullah 3-0-17-2; Amad Butt 2.4-0-31-0.

RESULT: Quetta Gladiators won by five wickets.

UMPIRES: R.E.J. Martinesz (Sri Lanka) and Tariq Rasheed (Pakistan).

TV UMPIRE: Rashid Riaz (Pakistan).

MATCH REFEREE: R.S. Mahanama (Sri Lanka).

MAN-OF-THE-MATCH: Ben Cutting (Quetta Gladiators).

Published in Dawn, February 28th, 2020