Steve Smith was in top form as Multan Sultans moved up to second spot in the PSL standings with a comprehensive six-wicket win over Rawalpindiz at the National Bank Stadium, Karachi, on Tuesday.
While Multan (12 points from eight matches) consolidated their position in the race for the playoffs, the winless Rawalpindiz suffered their eighth straight defeat in the league.
Some disciplined bowling efforts from Multan restricted Rawalpindiz to 166 for four. New Zealand’s Daryl Mitchell scored a fine 58, but Rawalpindi never looked like posting a big score.
In reply, Multan reached home with eight balls to spare as Smith scored a superb 56 off 31 balls.
The star Australian batter was named Player of the Match for his knock.
“I was trying to find the middle of the bat as much as I could, and it was nice to find it on a few occasions and get us in front of the scoring rate,” Smith said.
Earlier, veteran batsman Fakhar Zaman (103 off 51 balls) scored a sparkling century as Lahore Qalandars (197/6) beat Quetta Gladiators (188/7) by nine runs.
Lahore Qalandars are now in fourth place with eight points from eight matches, one point behind third-placed Islamabad United.
The already-qualified Peshawar Zalmi lead the table with 15 points from eight matches.
Brief scores:
Multan Sultans beat Rawalpindi by six wickets
Rawalpindi 166-4, 20 overs (Daryl Mitchell 58 not out, Dian Forrester 37 not out, Sam Billings 29, Mohammad Rizwan 26; Muhammad Imran 1-9)
Multan Sultans 167-4, 18.4 overs (Steven Smith 56, Ashton Turner 37 not out, Sahibzada Farhan 20, Shan Masood 20; Asif Afridi 2-28)
Player of the Match: Steven Smith (Multan Sultans)
Source: Khaleej Times