- Hyderabad Kingsmen’s pacers picked up seven wickets combined to restrict Rawalpindiz to 121
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Karachi, 16 April 2026: Hyderabad Kingsmen registered their third consecutive win in HBL Pakistan Super League 11 with a five-wicket victory over Rawalpindiz in Match 24 at the National Bank Stadium on Thursday, a double-header day that marked breast cancer awareness.
Kusal Perera and Muhammad Irfan Khan steered the chase home with an unbroken 54-run sixth-wicket stand as the pair finished unbeaten on 32 and 34 respectively as Hyderabad reached the target of 122 with 21 balls to spare. The result lifted the Hyderabad to fourth in the standings, while Rawalpindiz remained at the bottom.
Earlier, Mohammad Ali (4-0-21-3) and Hunain Shah (4-0-18-3) led a disciplined bowling effort that restricted Rawalpindiz to 121 for nine, with Saim Ayub proving particularly miserly in returning four overs for 14 without reward. Glenn Maxwell removed Usman Khawaja to claim his 200th T20 wicket.
Sam Billings top-scored for the Rawalpindiz with 26 from 22 balls while Yasir Khan laboured to 24 off 30 in a stop-start innings that never gained traction.
In the chase, Hyderabad suffered an early jolt when Maaz Sadaqat fell for four in the very first over off Asif Afridi (4-1-20-2). Skipper Marnus Labuschagne and Saim Ayub briefly counter-attacked with a 24-run stand before Asif struck again to remove Saim for 15 in the fifth over as the scoreboard read 28 for two.
Mohammad Amir (3-0-22-1) then had Usman Khan caught at short midwicket for an eight-ball duck to reduce Hyderabad to 29 for three. Labuschagne, however, continued to play his strokes and raced to 32 off 21 balls with six boundaries before being adjudged leg-before-wicket to Saad Masood in the ninth over after a successful Rawalpindiz review.
Maxwell was then cleaned up first ball by Ben Sears for a duck and the chase suddenly looked precarious at 69 for five within 10 overs. Perera and Irfan then took a measured approach, rotating the strike and finding the occasional boundary to keep the required rate in check. Irfan struck the only six of the stand, pumping Mohammad Amir over long-on in the 14th over, before Perera sealed the contest with a leg glance off Mubasir Khan in the 17th over.
Earlier, having been put in to bat, Rawalpindiz lost Khawaja bowled by Maxwell for two in the third over. Captain Mohammad Rizwan made 15 from 16 balls before being bowled by Ali in the fifth over. Hunain then dismissed Daryl Mitchell for a duck and Abdullah Fazal for 11 in successive overs as Rawalpindiz slumped to 41 for four inside 10 overs.
Yasir Khan and Sam Billings attempted a rebuild with a 21-run stand for the fifth wicket before Yasir fell for 24 caught by Maaz Sadaqat off Mohammad Ali in the 14th over. Billings continued to fight with a 22-ball 26 including a four and a six before being run out by Labuschagne in the 15th over.
The lower order offered little resistance as Hunain returned to dismiss Mubasir Khan for 11 and Mohammad Ali accounted for Ben Sears to leave the Rawalpindiz tottering at 113 for nine. A late 10-ball 15 from Asif Afridi, including three boundaries, helped them limp to 121 for nine in their 20 overs.
Scores in brief:
Hyderabad Kingsmen beat Rawalpindiz by five wickets at National Bank Stadium, Karachi
Rawalpindiz 121-9, 20 overs (Sam Billings 26, Yasir Khan 24; Hunain Shah 3-18, Mohammad Ali 3-21)
Hyderabad Kingsmen 123-5, 16.3 overs (Muhammad Irfan Khan 34 not out, Marnus Labuschagne 32, Kusal Perera 32 not out; Asif Afridi 2-20)
Player of the Match: Hunain Shah (Hyderabad Kingsmen)