KARACHI: Saad Baig stroked his maiden Pakistan Super League half-century and became the first batter to be retired out in the history of the competition as Hyderabad Kingsmen ended their four-match losing streak with a four-wicket victory over Karachi Kings on Saturday. In the other match, Peshawar Zalmi thrashed defending champions Lahore Qalandars by 76 runs to move to the top of the table with nine points at the halfway stage.

As soon as Saad reached his fifty off 37 balls with six fours — with Karachi Kings’ score reading 184 for six in 18.5 overs — the left-hander was called back to the dressing room. The decision backfired as the home side managed only four runs and lost two wickets off the last seven balls, finishing at 188 for eight.

In reply, Hyderabad Kingsmen looked down and out when they slipped to 139 for six in 15.1 overs, needing 50 off 29 balls. Hassan Khan then played a breathtaking innings of 33 not out off 16 balls with two fours and two sixes to give the debutants their first win with five balls and four wickets to spare. Irfan Khan Niazi lent solid support, returning unbeaten on 29 off 20 balls with two fours and a six.

Karachi Kings’ Hasan Ali, the most successful bowler in PSL history, was on the wrong end of things, conceding 10 and 13 runs in the 16th and 19th overs, respectively. Ihsanullah, returning to the event after nearly three years, gave away 16 runs in the 17th over, while Abbas Afridi conceded 10 in the 18th.

Maaz Sadaqat (37, 29b, 4×4, 2×6), Usman Khan (27, 13b, 3×4, 2×6) and Marnus Labuschagne (26, 10b, 3×4, 2×6) were the other notable run-scorers for Kingsmen.

Earlier, Moeen Ali, captaining Karachi Kings in place of David Warner, played a whirlwind 44 off 16 balls with one four and five sixes to accelerate the innings in the middle overs, with 98 runs added between the 11th and 18th overs. This included 22 runs off the 17th over bowled by Saim Ayub.

For Kingsmen, Hunain Shah was the most impressive bowler with figures of 4-0-19-3, while Mohammad Ali took two for 35. Maxwell had a forgettable PSL debut, first conceding 29 runs from two wicketless overs and then scoring a seven-ball two.

ZALMI BEAT QALANDARS

Sri Lanka’s Kusal Mendis collected his second successive Player of the Match award as Peshawar Zalmi handed defending champions Lahore Qalandars a 76-run drubbing in the 19th match of the competition. The defeat left Lahore Qalandars reeling in sixth position, behind Peshawar Zalmi (9), Multan Sultans (8), Islamabad United (7), Karachi Kings (6) and Quetta Gladiators (4).

Mendis followed up his 109 against Karachi Kings with a 48-ball 74 that proved to be the cornerstone of Zalmi’s 173 for seven. New Zealand’s Michael Bracewell and Sufiyan Muqeem claimed three wickets each, conceding 18 and 21 runs respectively, while Nahid Rana snapped up two for 15 as Qalandars were bundled out for 97 in 17 overs after having been 43 for one in the sixth over.

Mendis struck five fours and four sixes, reaching his fifty off 35 balls with four fours and three sixes. He put on 109 for the second wicket off 79 balls with Babar Azam after Mohammad Haris had departed having scored all 18 of his runs.

Babar, who scored 87 not out against Karachi Kings in a record 191-run partnership, scored 43 off 40 balls with three fours and a six.

Bracewell contributed a quickfire 10-ball 21 with one four and two sixes as Zalmi scored 47 in the last five overs on a surface more conducive to bowlers — especially the slow bowlers — than stroke-makers.

Shaheen Shah Afridi was the pick of Qalandars’ bowlers with three for 22, while Bangladesh’s Mustafizur Rahman took two for 30.

Scores in brief:

19th Match – Peshawar Zalmi beat Lahore Qalandars by 76 runs

PESHAWAR ZALMI 173-7, 20 overs (Kusal Mendis 74, Babar Azam 43, Michael Bracewell 21, Mohammad Haris 18; Shaheen Shah Afridi 3-22, Mustafizur Rehman 2-30)

LAHORE QALANDARS 97 all-out, 17 overs (Fakhar Zaman 21, Abdullah Shafique 21, Dunith Wellalage 20; Michael Bracewell 3-18, Sufiyan Muqeem 3-21, Nahid Rana 2-15)

PLAYER OF THE MATCH – Kusal Mendis (Peshawar Zalmi)

20th Match – Hyderabad Kingsmen beat Karachi Kings by four wickets

KARACHI KINGS 188-8, 20 overs (Saad Baig 53 retired out, Moeen Ali 44, Azam Khan 26, Mohammad Waseem 25, Saman Ali Agha 24; Hunain Shah 3-19, Mohammad Ali 2-35)

HYDERABAD KINGSMEN 189-6, 19.1 overs (Maaz Sadaqat 37, Hassan Khan 33 not out, Irfan Khan Niazi 29 not out, Usman Khan 27, Marnus Labuschagne 26; Abbas Afridi 2-30)

PLAYER OF THE MATCH – Hassan Khan (Hyderabad Kingsmen)

SUNDAY’S FIXTURE: Hyderabad Kingsmen v Islamabad United