Daryl Mitchell shines as Qalandars defeat bottom-ranked Sultans

LAHORE: Daryl Mitchell complemented his bowling figures of 1/47 with a blistering half-century that powered Lahore Qalandars to a commanding five-wicket triumph over Multan Sultans at the Gaddafi Stadium on Saturday.

Chasing a challenging 186-run target, the home side achieved victory with five wickets in hand and six balls to spare.

However, Qalandars’ pursuit had a shaky beginning as opener Mohammad Naeem (6) perished to Josh Little in the second over, with just 12 runs on the board.

Following the early hiccup, Fakhar Zaman and Abdullah Shafique stitched together a 33-run partnership for the second wicket before Mohammad Hasnain removed Fakhar on the first ball after the powerplay.

Fakhar made a handy 28 off 22 balls, striking three fours and two sixes.

Abdullah then forged a 49-run stand for the third wicket alongside Daryl Mitchell to keep the Qalandars on track.

But young pacer Ubaid Shah dealt a double blow, removing the set Abdullah Shafique and then dismissing Sam Billings for a three-ball duck in a dramatic 12th over.

Shafique’s quickfire 34 came off 25 balls, featuring two fours and two sixes.

Those twin strikes left Qalandars reeling at 95/4 after 12 overs, but Mitchell and the in-form Sikandar Raza turned the tide with a match-defining 89-run partnership for the fifth wicket.

The pair counterattacked with clean, powerful hitting, bringing the Qalandars within touching distance of victory before Mitchell fell in the penultimate over.

Mitchell top-scored with a 38-ball 64, laced with four fours and four sixes.

Raza remained unbeaten, steering his team home with a 21-ball 40 not out, peppered with two fours and four maximums.

For the Sultans, Ubaid Shah was the pick of the bowlers with two scalps, while Hasnain, Akif Javed, and Josh Little picked up one wicket each.

Earlier, after being put into bat, Multan Sultans posted a solid 185/3 in their 20 overs, anchored by an unbroken 115-run partnership between Mohammad Rizwan and Kamran Ghulam.

The visitors, after a cautious start, accelerated through opener Yasir Khan, who struck a six and a four before being dismissed after a lively 24 off 18 balls.

Rizwan then stitched together brief partnerships with Usman Khan (18 off 14) and Shai Hope (9 off 9).

At 70/3 in 10.1 overs, Kamran Ghulam joined his captain at the crease and the two rebuilt the innings smartly, taking on Qalandars’ bowling with calculated aggression.

Rizwan remained unbeaten on 76 off 48 balls, hammering six boundaries and three sixes, while Ghulam supported brilliantly with a 31-ball 52 not out, which included two fours and four sixes.

For the Qalandars, Tom Curran, Haris Rauf, and Daryl Mitchell picked up a wicket each.