Karachi Kings 181 for 7 (Moeen 48*, Warner 35, Daniyal 3-36) beat Quetta Gladiators 167 for 7 (Shamyl 52, Shakeel 33, Hasan Ali 4-27) by 14 runs
An all-round performance from Moeen Ali spearheaded Karachi Kings to a come-from-behind 14-run win in their opening game over Quetta Gladiators. The former England allrounder scored an unbeaten 48 off 29 and sent down a tight four over spell. He was complemented by a superb bowling showing from Hasan Ali, who took 4 for 27 to turn the tables on Gladiators, who had got off to a flyer in pursuit of 182. That was thanks to a lightning half-century from Shamyl Hussain, but with little support lower down the order, Gladiators' challenge fizzled out as they ended up on 167.
Gladiators had won the toss, with Saud Shakeel opting to put Kings in to bat at the Gaddafi. They got off to the perfect start as Alzarri Joseph removed Muhammad Waseem in the first over, but could not prevent David Warner and Salman Agha flying through the next three to put on 44 in four. Ahmed Daniyal trapped Agha in front, but his 22 off 10 was a useful cameo in the powerplay, and Saad Baig provided decent support as Warner continued to power along in the first ten.
As was the case with Lahore Qalandars yesterday, Kings lost their way for about seven overs after that followed. Moeen and Azam Khan struggled through a turgid partnership that put on nine runs in 17 balls, and while the rate picked up over the next couple of overs, Gladiators had managed to rein Kings in successfully. It was only a few useful blows at the death from Moeen that allowed his side to sneak over 180, but it felt at the time as if runs had been left behind.
That sense was exacerbated in a fearsome first Powerplay from Gladiators. Shamyl was the architect of that carnage, especially at the back-end of the Powerplay, where Hasan Ali, Shahid Aziz and Mir Hamza combined to go for 48 runs in three overs as Quetta surged to 75 in the Powerplay. Off the last delivery of the fielding restrictions, Shamyl lofted Mir Hamza to bring up a 21-ball half-century.
It was as good as it got for the Gladiators though. As he has done so often, Adam Zampa came on and brought the opposition innings to a screeching halt. 5 runs off his first over set the tone before he struck in the second to dismiss Khawaja Nafay cheaply. At the other end, Salman Agha managed to get rid of Shamyl after he was unable to get underneath a short delivery. Slowly, the asking rate began to rise again.
Hasan Ali returned with a superb three-over spell to make up for his initial 16-run over, varying the pace of his deliveries masterfully. He cleaned up Rilee Rossouw from around the wicket, before it all culminated in a three-wicket penultimate over to put an end to any Gladiators' aspirations of chasing the total down. Mir Hamza had the straightforward task of defending 30 in the final over as Kings sealed a win which showcased both their bowling and batting strengths to get off to the perfect start.
