Islamabad United beat Multan Sultans by two wickets in a thrilling final to claim their third Pakistan Super League title in Karachi.
Tailender Hunain Shah came in to face the final ball after the dismissal of his brother Naseem Shah and steered fast bowler Mohammad Ali’s delivery through point to finish the nailbiter and claim the PSL trophy.
Earlier, Multan posted 159-9 with Muhammad Rizwan (26) and Usman Khan (57) sharing a 53-run partnership while spinner Imad Wasim (5-23) finished with a five-for, the first in a PSL final.
Islamabad’s chase got off to a great start from opener Martin Guptill posting 50 but then stumbled in the middle before Wasim (19no) and Naseem (17) finished strongly. Islamabad reached 163-8 to add to their titles in 2016 and 2018.
Multan have now lost three successive finals since their only victory in 2021 whereas Islamabad have become the first team to clinch three wins.
Former England World Cup-winning Alex Hartley was a spin coach for Multan, alongside ex-Ireland international Cath Dalton, who became the first woman to be a fast bowling coach in a professional men’s team.
Islamabad United beat Multan Sultans by two wickets in the PSL final
Islamabad captain Shadab Khan (3-32) helped to skittle Multan’s top order as he removed their skipper Rizwan and Khan.
David Willey, Yasir Khan and Usama Mir were all out for six before Iftikhar Ahmed hit an unbeaten 32 off 20 balls to help Multan post a respectable total and give them hope.
In reply, Islamabad slipped to 55-3 but Guptill and Azam Khan (30) put on a 47-run stand in their fourth-wicket partnership.
Khushdil Shah (2-21) removed Colin Munro (17) and Salman Agha (10) while Iftikhar claimed the wickets of Shadab (4) and Faheem Ashraf (1) as Islamabad fell to 159-8.
Naseem was removed in the final over but Hunain managed to hold his nerve on the final ball and lead the men in red to their third title victory.
Shadab: This trophy means a lot
Islamabad captain and player of the tournament Shadab Khan: “It’s really tough for me to watch the match – it’s easier on the ground. The sign of a good team is when they win without playing a perfect game.
“There was a lot of hard work and belief behind winning this trophy, so this trophy means a lot to us.”
Rizwan: Multan played well
Multan Sultans captain Muhammad Rizwan: “If the match goes to the last ball, you can’t really point out any flaws. Credit to Imad for taking five wickets and scoring those crucial runs.
“There were a few ups and downs in our batting. Congratulations to Islamabad.”
Get Sky Sports on WhatsApp
You can now receive messages and alerts for the latest breaking sports news, analysis, in-depth features and videos from our dedicated WhatsApp channel. Find out more here…
