Multan Sultans held their nerve against a late surge from Karachi Kings to register an 11-run win and get back to winning momentum. The triumph was Multan’s fifth success in PSL 2026, while Karachi were dealt their fourth defeat of the campaign. After choosing to field first, the Kings found an early breakthrough when Steve Smith was dismissed for a duck in the second over, setting up a promising start.
For a while, the Powerplay failed to spark much rhythm for the Kings’ bowlers, and the momentum swung quickly. Josh Philippe and Awais Zafar punished Abbas Afridi for a brutal burst, smashing 25 runs off his over, and then added a couple of more boundaries in the closing moments of the six-over phase. The scoreboard reflected the shift in control: only 33 runs were managed in the first four overs of the restrictions, but the next two overs brought a lift, with 36 more added.
Karachi sensed they needed Khushdil Shah to reassert pressure and break a dangerous partnership, but Shan Masood continued to pile on the pain. Even after Khushdil returned for a third time to strike again, Masood responded with two maximums off him, finishing the over in style and keeping Multan on course.
Although no batter produced a truly massive innings, Multan still benefited from contributions across the innings. With Masood departing for 46 and captain Ashton Turner struggling, the Sultans were kept moving by crucial scoring from the lower order, pushing the total past the 200-mark. Arafat Minhas then made an impact early in the Kings’ reply by cutting short Jason Roy’s time at the crease just as the batter looked set to accelerate.
The Powerplay swung decisively towards Multan again as Minhas struck once more, removing Salman Agha, and he was followed by another wicket with Peter Siddle starting his wicket haul. Even with Reeza Hendricks and Moeen Ali stabilising the chase, the required rate kept rising, tightening the screws on Karachi’s pursuit.
Moeen, who had struggled to find clean timing, finally broke free with two sixes off Siddle. However, Turner struck in the very next over to send Moeen back, dashing Karachi’s momentum at a critical stage. With the target reading 71 from the last five overs and Karachi still needing runs with only five wickets remaining, the contest looked largely decided.
Yet Afridi and Hasan Ali refused to roll over, hitting boundaries in quick succession and creating fresh tension inside the Sultans camp. Their late blitz reduced the equation to 23 needed off 12 deliveries, setting up a tense final stretch. In the penultimate over, Siddle managed to remove the dangerous Afridi, applying the squeeze that ultimately ensured Multan saw the game through.
Brief scores: Multan Sultans 207/7 in 20 overs (Shan Masood 46, Josh Philippe 44; Khushdil Shah 3/35) beat Karachi Kings 196 in 19.4 overs (Reeza Hendricks 49, Abbas Afridi 34; Arafat Minhas 3/32, Peter Siddle 2/28) by 11 runs
