KARACHI: Sunday March 25th should go down in history as a truly iconic day for Karachi when big-time cricket returned to the city of lights. But, more importantly, the Karachiites rose in unison on the momentous occasion of Pakistan Super League final to defeat the heaviest of odds that had plagued their beautiful city for over a decade.

For once, the result of the game didn’t matter as the players, the fans and the officials assembled for a bigger cause — the revival of peace and harmony in the sprawling metropolis. The spectre of terrorism, violence died a natural death while despair, darkness, ethnic and sectarian divides vanished into thin air as people’s undying passion for the game, its competitive spirit proved a catalyst in harmonising them both in and outside the magnificently illuminated National Cricket Stadium.

Islamabad United dethroned Peshawar Zalmi to win the final by three wickets in what eventually turned out to be a hugely entertaining game as they clinched their second HBL Pakistan Super League title after the inaugural victory.

• Islamabad United lift the trophy • Stringent security ensures smooth proceedings • National Stadium sees a turnout of over 33,000

After restricting Peshawar to 148-9, Islamabad almost nonchalantly motored to their target with the foundation being laid down by man-of-the-match Luke Ronchi and Sahibzada Farhan who set off the chase in a blazing first-wicket partnership of 96 from just 53 deliveries.

The game suddenly came alive as Islamabad suffered a sensational collapse when Peshawar clawed back brilliantly to take claim six wickets in the space of 44 balls for the 20 runs. But the pendulum swung back in Islamabad’s favour when Asif Ali pulled three successive balls from Hasan Ali for sixes as the unheralded right-hander blas­ted 26 off just six balls.

Fahim then triggered off wild celebrations in the Islamabad dugout by hooking Wahab Riaz over the long leg boundary for a six to complete a night of great delight for the Karachiites who had thronged the stadium in large numbers.

Ronchi, the tournament’s leading run-getter with 435 at 43.50 in a performance which fetched him the player-of-the-tournament award, thrashed a blistering 52 off 26 balls with the majority of his runs coming via four sixes and three fours, before slashing a catch to Andre Fletcher at point off Chris Jordan, leaving the door ajar for Peshawar to make further inroads.

Farhan, who had got eye in compared to the rest of the order after Ronchi’s departure in the ninth over, was culpable of throwing his wicket rather unnecessarily when top-edged a pull down Hasan Ali’s throat after contributing 44 — a 33-ball knock embedded with five boundaries and one six.

But Hussain and Asif eased the mounting tension both in the team dugout and in the federal capital some 1,200 kilometres away north of Karachi by quickly adding 32 in 12 balls.

And although Islamabad emerged as the second-time champions of the Swarovski-made PSL trophy, cricket was the ultimate winner — significantly on the 26th anniversary of Pakistan’s treasured World Cup victory in the final against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground — as Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi was among a host of dignitaries and other VVIPs who graced the occasion to see history being made.

The prime minister, who left just after halfway point of the Islamabad innings, lauded the untiring efforts of Sindh government, headed by Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, in reviving return of topflight cricket to the commercial capital of Pakistan. Also gracing the monumental evening was PPP co-chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Sindh Governor Mohammad Zubair and top military and civil officials.

Undaunted by the unprecedented security blanket engulfing the stadium, the mood inside the arena was one of festivity and relief since everything went smoothly as Karachi hosted its biggest sporting occasion since February 2009 when Sri Lanka played here in a Test.

Peshawar struggled from the onset after Darren Sammy opted to bat first upon winning the toss in front of a boisterous 33,000-plus crowd when the champions suffered a crippling blow upfront as Kamran Akmal was trapped for a nine-ball 1 by Samit Patel, who then held a return catch to dismiss Mohammad Hafeez (8).

After Fletcher (21 off 15 balls, four overs) fell to Shadab Khan, Chris Jordan (36 off 26, three fours and one six) and Liam Dawson (33 off 30, one six and one four) put on 52 in 39 balls for the fourth wicket.

Peshawar fell thereafter until Wahab infused some oxygen in the death overs by clattering four fours and one six in a breezy 14-ball cameo of 28 not out while sharing the second best partnership of the innings, 27 in 13 balls with last man Sameen Gul (2).

Scoreboard

PESHAWAR ZALMI:

Kamran Akmal lbw b Patel 1
A.D.R. Fletcher lbw b Shadab 21’
Mohammad Hafeez c and b Patel 8’
C.J. Jordan c Duminy b Hussain 36
L.A. Dawson b Sami 33
Saad Nasim c and b Hussain 2
D.J.G. Sammy lbw b Shadab 6
Umaid Asif lbw b Shadab 0
Hasan Ali c Walton b Fahim 6
Wahab Riaz not out 28
Sameen Gul not out2

EXTRAS (LB-3, W-2) 5

TOTAL (for nine wkts, 20 overs) 148

FALL OF WKTS: 1-12, 2-26, 3-38, 4-90, 5-101, 6-111, 7-111, 8-117, 9-121.

BOWLING: Patel 4-0-26-2; Mohammad Sami 4-0-31-1 (1w); Shadab Khan 4-0-25-3; Fahim Ashraf 4-0-32-1; Amad Butt 2-0-13-0; Hussain Talat 2-0-18-2 (1w).

ISLAMABAD UNITED:

L. Ronchi c Fletcher b Jordan 52
Sahibzada Farhan c Hasan b Wahab 44
C.A.K. Walton b Umaid 0
J.P. Duminy c and b Jordan 2
S.R. Patel c Hafeez b Hasan 10
Shadab Khan c Jordan b Hasan 1
Hussain Talat b Wahab 7
Asif Ali not out 26
Fahim Ashraf not out 6

EXTRAS (LB-1, W-5) 6

TOTAL (for seven wkts, 16.5 overs) 154

FALL OF WKTS: 1-96, 2-97, 3-102, 4-112, 5-115, 6-116, 7-148.

DID NOT BAT: Amad Butt, Mohammad Sami.

BOWLING: Hasan Ali 4-0-53-2 (2w); Sameen Gul 1-0-9-0; Dawson 1-0-15-0; Wahab Riaz 3.5-0-28-2; Umaid Asif 4-0-26-1; Jordan 3-0-22-2 (3w).

RESULT: Islamabad United won by three wickets.

UMPIRES: Aleem Dar (Pakistan) and Shozab Raza (Pakistan).

TV UMPIRE: Ahmed Shahab (Pakistan).

MATCH REFEREE: R.S. Mahanama (Sri Lanka).

MAN-OF-THE-MATCH: Luke Ronchi.

PLAYER-OF-THE-TOURNAMENT: Luke Ronchi.

Published in Dawn, March 26th, 2018