PSL: David Warner holds firm, Khushdil Shah finishes job for Karachi Kings

Dubai: Khushdil Shah held his nerve in a tense finish to guide Karachi Kings to a thrilling two-wicket win over Peshawar Zalmi in their Pakistan Super League clash on Monday.

Chasing 148, Australian opener David Warner anchored the innings with a composed half-century as wickets fell regularly at the other end. At 89 for five, Karachi were in trouble, but a crucial 30-run stand between Warner and Khushdil revived their chase. The all-rounder then saw them home with an unbeaten knock that capped a fine all-round performance.

“I’ve been batting higher up this season, but this was a pressure game,” said Khushdil after collecting the Player of the Match award. “The management asked me to drop down the order, and I just wanted to take it deep. When the last over came, I felt confident because I knew a part-timer would bowl it. Karachi are giving me opportunities with both bat and ball, just the way I like it—and it’s working well. I’ve bowled to Babar before, I’m always after him — and yeah, that was a key wicket.”

Opting to field, Khushdil, Abbas Afridi and Mir Hamza delivered disciplined spells to restrict Zalmi to a below-par total.

Zalmi captain Babar Azam returned to form with a patient 46 before becoming Khushdil’s second of three victims. Young opener Saim Ayub, meanwhile, fell cheaply for the third match in a row after his half-century in the opener.

“I got out at the wrong time, and the momentum shifted,” Babar said. “We were probably 10–15 runs short. It’s tough for new batters to get going on this pitch. Our plan was for one batter to bat deep — like Warner did for them — but once I got out, our new batters struggled. Our bowling combination is starting to settle, and we’ll work on our mistakes and come back stronger.”

Karachi, who have played all their matches at home this season, are now second on the PSL 10 table with six points from five games.

“I’m very happy — another tough wicket, and we took some learnings from the last game,” Warner said. “Khushdil bowled fantastically alongside Nabi. I told the boys to keep taking the positive option. Once the ball got soft, it was easier to bat and didn’t misbehave as much. If you lose early wickets, it’s just about assessing and staying in. We’ve got depth in the squad, and we need to win a couple more. I always said 150 would be a good total, and restricting them under that was fantastic. The bowlers did well up front and at the death.”

Karachi Kings beat Peshawar Zalmi by two wickets. Karachi Kings 148 for 8 (Warner 60, Khushdil 23 not out; Wood 3-28) Peshawar Zalmi 147 for 8 (Babar 46; Khushdil 3-20, Afridi 3-30).