In tonight’s Pakistan Super League (PSL) encounter against Islamabad United at Gaddafi Stadium, Babar Azam’s Karachi Kings will seek to go all-in.
The Kings have lost all six of their matches in the ongoing seventh season of the PSL, and another loss will remove them from contention for the play-offs. With so many ifs and buts, a win will keep their aspirations alive.
Shoaib Akhtar ponders the Karachi Kings’ situation.
On the other hand, Islamabad has six points from six games, and a win would place them in a comfortable position on the points table.
Both teams come into this encounter after losing their previous games.
Quetta Gladiators overpowered Islamabad United, while Karachi Kings were defeated by Peshawar Zalmi.
Islamabad will go into the game as the favourite, as their recent form and statistical history favour them over the Kings.
Both teams have met 17 times, with United leading the way with 11 triumphs and the Kings with six victories. When the two teams played in the first leg of the competition at the National Stadium Karachi, United came out on top.
The Karachi Kings are on the verge of being knocked out of the playoff race.
While Islamabad has little to worry about, save for the death overs bowling in Lahore, the Kings will be under a lot of pressure for this encounter, with all eyes on skipper Babar Azam.
Babar has scored 253 runs in six innings at an average of 50.60, including two fifties, but none of his contributions have been enough to save his team from defeat.
As the Kings continue to struggle, the management hopes Babar will lead from the front and take care of increasing the scoreboard rather than depending on batters around him.
In the 21st match of the ongoing PSL season, Islamabad United, the two-time PSL winners, will face Karachi Kings at 7:30 p.m. tonight at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.
Babar Azam and Shadab Khan are two players to keep an eye on.
Babar Azam, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Nabi, Joe Clarke, Sharjeel Khan, Aamer Yamin, Chris Jordan, Lewis Gregory, Umaid Asif, Ian Cockbain, Muhammad Imran, Faisal Akram, Qasim Akram, Talha Ahsan, Tom Lammonby, Usman Shinwari, Sahibzada Farhan, Jordan Thompson, and Mohammad Taha Khan are the Karachi Kings’ squads.
Asif Ali, Hasan Ali, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Alex Hales, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Azam Khan, Colin Munro, Marchant de Lange, Muhammad Akhlaq, Danish Aziz, Zafar Gohar, Mubasir Khan, M. Zeeshan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ather Mehmood, Musa Khan, Zahir
