After winning the toss, Shadab Khan became the first captain this season to choose to bat, and his team got off to an unusually good start, finishing the Powerplay with 39 for two. Mohammad Hasnain continued to perform admirably with the ball as he returned Rahmanullah Gurbaz, last night’s hero, in the second over after Iftikhar Ahmed made an outstanding catch, and Rassie van der Dussen in the fourth.
Azam and Asif Ali struck a partnership that would define the match and launched a counterattack on the Gladiators’ bowlers with the team at 77/4 after 10 overs.
In just 45 deliveries, the pair added a brisk 98 runs, with Azam serving as the primary aggressor of the game-changing spell.
In the 18th over, Naseem finally broke the partnership by dismissing Asif, who scored 42 off just 24 deliveries with a boundary and four sixes.
Aimal Khan, a young pacer making his Gladiators debut, took care of Colin Munro, who scored 38 runs off 22 balls, including four and four maximums.
Shadab Khan, the captain of Islamabad, was sent packing by Odean Smith after the all-rounder attempted to play a big shot but edged and was bowled. He hit 14 balls and scored 12 runs.
Azam Khan excelled as Islamabad United defeated Quetta Gladiators by a massive 221 runs.
In 42 balls, Azam scored 97 runs, including nine boundaries and eight maximums. Islamabad United scored 92 runs in the final five overs thanks to his fireworks.
The Gladiators chase got off to a bad start when they lost three wickets for just 26 runs in the fourth over, and all three of their top batters were caught cheaply.
Will Smeed was undone in the fourth by Abrar’s mysterious spin, leaving Quetta Gladiators struggling at 26 for three.
Hafeez and captain Sarfaraz Ahmed attempted to anchor the run chase after the slump with a crucial 69-run partnership for the third wicket, keeping the Gladiators in the hunt.
In the eleventh over, Hafeez got out, almost guaranteeing Islamabad United’s victory.
Shadab Khan caught Sarfaraz LBW right after the strategic timeout.
Mohammad Nawaz was sent back to the pavilion when Islamabad skipper Shadab struck again in the same over.
Iftikhar Ahmed made an effort to take command, but he was unable to really get going. Before getting out to Hasan Ali, the right-handed batter scored 39 runs on 27 pitches.
Within five deliveries, all-rounder Odean Smith, Mohammad Hasnain, and Naseem Shah were returned.
The United’s Farooqi and Hasan Ali each took three wickets, and Shadab Khan and Abrar Ahmed each struck twice.
In the 13th match, Islamabad United defeated Quetta Gladiators by 63 runs, led by Azam Khan.