Sahibzada Farhan and Josh Philippe scored fifties as Multan Sultans beat Rawalpindiz by seven wickets in the 14th match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Monday. Set to chase a 183-run target, the Sultans comfortably knocked the winning runs for the loss of just three wickets and 22 balls to spare. The leaders, however, had a contrasting start to their pursuit as Mohammad Amir dismissed their in-form opener Steve Smith (five) in the second over with just 12 runs on the board.
But the early setback did not bother the Sultans as in-form Farhan and Philippe turned the game on its head by putting together a blazing 110-run partnership for the second wicket, which saw both batters amassing their respective half-centuries. The monumental stand was eventually broken by Amir in the 12th over when he outfoxed Philippe with a slower delivery, who remained a notable run-getter for the Sultans with a brisk 56 off 30 deliveries, comprising six fours and three sixes.
Farhan, on the other hand, followed suit 11 balls later, getting cleaned up by Amir Khan after top-scoring for the Sultans with 68 off 36 deliveries, studded with five sixes and four fours. Following the back-to-back departure of set batters, skipper Ashton Turner and his deputy Shan Masood batted sensibly at the backend and steered their side to glory on the second delivery of the 17th over with an unbeaten 47-run partnership. Masood remained unbeaten with a 15-ball 27, while Turner made 26 not out from just 10 deliveries.
Mohammad Amir was the pick of the bowlers for the Pindiz, taking two wickets for 32 runs in his three overs, while Mohammad Amir Khan bagged one.
Put into bat first, the seventh-placed side racked up 182/8 in their 20 overs despite Faisal Akram’s four-wicket haul. The Pindiz got off to a shaky start to their innings as their opener Yasir Khan (five) was dismissed by Muhammad Ismail in the third over with just 15 runs on the board.
Following the early stutter, captain Mohammad Rizwan (19) was joined by Kamran Ghulam in the middle, and the duo batted sensibly to raise an anchoring 33-run partnership for the second wicket, which culminated with the former’s dismissal off Arafat Minhas in the sixth over.
Ghulam was then involved in brief partnerships with Abdullah Fazal (14) and Daryl Mitchell (17), until eventually getting dismissed by Akram in the 10th over and walking back after scoring a 24-ball 35, laced with three fours and two sixes.
His dismissal paved the way for Sam Billings to walk out and bat at No.6, and the wicketkeeper batter waged a valiant fight to add valuable runs at the backend with his unbeaten 56 off 34 deliveries, studded with seven fours and a six. He also shared a 33-run partnership for the sixth wicket with Dian Forrester, who played a blistering 24-run cameo off just 11 deliveries, featuring three sixes. Akram spearheaded the Sultans’ bowling charge with economical figures of 4/31 in his four overs, followed by Minhas, who bagged two wickets, while Peter Siddle and Ismail chipped in with one scalp apiece.