HBL PSL 11: A glance at teams’ progress after 26 matches
Karachi (Sports News): The HBL Pakistan Super League 11 has seen a total of 26 matches till 17 April with Peshawar Zalmi, Islamabad United, Quetta Gladiators and Hyderabad Kingsmen having played seven matches each. Multan Sultans, Karachi Kings, Lahore Qalandars and Rawalpindiz have so far played six matches each. Out of the remaining 14 league matches, five are set to be played at Gaddafi Stadium with Quetta, Lahore, Karachi and Peshawar set to be in action there. At the National Bank Stadium in Karachi, the remaining nine league matches will be played till the 26 April double-header. The Qualifier between the top two teams will be played on 28 April at the National Bank Stadium. The third and fourth-placed teams will then lock horns in Eliminator 1 on 29 April in Lahore. The losing team of the Qualifier and winner of the Eliminator 1 will be pitted against each other on 1 May in Eliminator 2 in Lahore as well to decide the second finalist. The final of the HBL PSL 11 between the winners of the Qualifier and Eliminator 2 will be played at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore on Sunday, 3 May. Following is the breakdown of how all the teams fare before the playoffs and final: 8. Rawalpindiz: The newcomers to the HBL PSL have lost all their six matches and are out of the playoffs race. For them the remaining four matches are a great opportunity to finish the season on a high. For three of the four oppositions those matches could carry a lot of importance with respect to qualification so the Rawalpindiz can play spoilsport if they win some. Upcoming fixtures: v LQ on 18 April, v MS on 21 April, v IU on 23 April, v HK 26 April Top run scorer so far: Sam Billings – 188 runs Top wicket-taker so far: Mohammad Amir – 8 wickets 7. Lahore Qalandars: The defending champions have beaten Hyderabad Kingsmen and Multan Sultans so far with the latter being a 13-over rain-hit affair. Three of their four losses have come in Karachi, where they have been bowled out for 100 in 18.3 overs, 97 in 17 overs and 134 in 19.5 overs. At the same turf, they now face the prospect of a must-win match today against Rawalpindiz before flying out to face Quetta, Karachi and Peshawar in Lahore. Winning all four games promises a total of 12 points, which will certainly ensure a fourth place at least. Losing even one of the games will almost force them out albeit a tie of 10 points with any of the teams enters into a net run rate battle and theirs is currently -1.020. Upcoming fixtures: v RP on 18 April, v QG on 21 April, v KK on 23 April, v PZ on 25 April Top run scorer so far: Haseebullah – 123 runs Top wicket-taker so far: Shaheen Shah Afridi – 11 wickets 6. Karachi Kings: The 2020 champions have blown hot and cold in their six matches. They beat Quetta, Lahore and Rawalpindiz to open their campaign with confidence in Lahore, but then lost to Peshawar, Hyderabad and Islamabad in Karachi. They were also without captain David Warner in the last two games who sat out with back pain.In ascending order on the table, Karachi Kings (-1.501 NRR), Hyderabad Kingsmen (-0.470 NRR) and Quetta Gladiators (+0.483) are three teams tied on six points but separated by net run rate. Karachi can gain a maximum of 14 points but for that they will have to beat Multan, Peshawar, Lahore and Quetta. In that case, Karachi will upend Lahore and Quetta’s prospects and automatically be above Kingsmen.Upcoming fixtures: v MS on 19 April, v PZ on 22 April, v LQ on 23 April, v QG on 25 April Top run scorer so far: Azam Khan – 187 runs Top wicket-taker so far: Hasan Ali – 10 wickets 5. Hyderabad Kingsmen: The Hyderabad Kingsmen have made a remarkable turnaround in their campaign so far winning three matches back-to-back and jumping to fourth for once after losing their first four games. Glenn Maxwell’s addition has brought balance to the side and coincided with a shift in results, while Hassan Khan, Marnus Labuschagne and Hunain Shah have earned player of the match awards in the three wins so far. They now face the steep challenge of beating second and third placed Islamabad United and Multan Sultans, while they will be up against Rawalpindiz in their last league match. Wins in these three matches will give them a maximum of 12 points, which could still turn out to be precarious if they don’t maintain a better net run rate.Upcoming fixtures: v MS on 22 April, v IU on 24 April, v RP on 26 April (afternoon game) Top run scorer so far: Marnus Labuschagne – 203 runs Top wicket-taker so far: Mohammad Ali – 9 wickets 4. Quetta Gladiators: The Saud Shakeel-led outfit enjoy the fourth place currently after net run rate boosting 40-run win over Kingsmen and a 61-run win over Rawalpindiz. On Friday night, they put on complete all-round performance, dismantling the defending champions with pace, spin and a century stand. The contest against red-hot Peshawar will determine if the last year’s losing finalists can stand the pressures of the business end of the tournament. Whether they get over the line or not in that game, they will have a chance to spoil Lahore and Karachi’s prospects of going ahead by winning those games. If they manage to win all three, it will put them in good stead for cementing the fourth position.Upcoming fixtures: v PZ on 19 April, v LQ on 21 April (afternoon game), v KK on 25 April (afternoon game)Top run scorer so far: Hasan Nawaz - 283 runs Top wicket-taker (s) so far: Usman Tariq, Abrar Ahmed and Alzarri Joseph (7 wickets each)3. Multan Sultans: Multan Sultans have lost to Lahore Qalandars and Peshawar Zalmi so far while having beaten Islamabad, Hyderabad, Quetta and Rawalpindiz. Their only game in Karachi so far yielded a 24-run defeat against Peshawar, where they lost their top five to Sufyan Moqim and Iftikhar Ahmed. Their next three games are in a space of four days before they face Islamabad in the last game on 26 April.They have the chance to lay to rest Karachi Kings’ chances, hand Rawalpindiz second head-to-head loss and spoil Hyderabad’s campaign as well. If they win all these games then they will be in a strong position in terms of points before their last game against a strong United outfit.Defeats in the first two of the four remaining matches could open competition for playoffs slots and make the table more interesting. Upcoming fixtures: v KK on 19 April (afternoon game), v RP on 21 April, v HK on 22 April, v IU on 26 AprilTop run scorer so far: Sahibzada Farhan – 249 runs Top wicket-taker (s) so far: Mohammad Nawaz and Peter Siddle (6 wickets each)2. Islamabad United: Second-placed Islamabad United have won all their four matches while chasing. They lost their opening game against Multan Sultans and on 12 April they faced a setback against Hyderabad Kingsmen. They beat Karachi Kings to come back to winning ways on 16 April. Shadab’s team will be eager to enter their nine points so far to double figure mark with a win over Rawalpindiz in the Twin-cities Derby on 23 April. Islamabad United will have to surmount the Hyderabad and Multan challenge in their remaining two games. Two losses in the three last games can also put them in danger of falling off the cliff. Upcoming fixtures: v RP on 23 April (afternoon game), v HK on 24 April, v MS on 26 AprilTop run scorer so far: Sameer Minhas – 265 runs Top wicket-taker so far: Shadab Khan – 9 wickets 1. Peshawar Zalmi The only unbeaten team in the HBL PSL 11 was confirmed to have qualified for the playoffs after Lahore Qalandars lost to Quetta Gladiators on Friday night. Zalmi have been clinical in their six completed matches with only Hyderabad Kingsmen threatening to beat them in a last-ball thriller on 8 April. In the next game, Zalmi flexed their muscle with the largest ever winning margin in HBL PSL’s history – 159 – against Karachi Kings. Zalmi have 13 points to their name and will face Quetta, Karachi and Lahore in their last three matches. All three oppositions are fighting for a fourth-place finish and can prove their worth by beating the title contenders Zalmi. Meanwhile, their potent weapon Nahid Rana, who picked up 7-76 in his 14 overs across four matches is no longer available. Sufyan Moqim, though, is in elite bowling form and has become the first Pakistan bowler to take three or more wickets in five consecutive T20s. Upcoming fixtures: v QG on 19 April, v KK on 22 April (Afternoon game), v LQ on 25 April. Top run scorer (s) so far: Kusal Mendis (330 runs) and (Babar Azam (301 runs) Top wicket-taker so far: Sufyan Moqim (16 wickets)