Hyderabad Kingsmen seal final playoffs spot with thumping victory

With their season on the line, Hyderabad Kingsmen conjured an all-round performance to demolish the 10th-placed Rawalpindiz with a 108-run victory that earned them the last remaining playoff spot. Rawalpindiz finished the season with nine defeats in 10 games.

Kingsmen smashed their way to 244/6 in 20 overs. Marnus Labuschagne fell early after the Kingsmen were asked to bat first. Maaz Sadaqat fell in the Powerplay but smashed five fours and a six for his 11-ball 28. Usman Khan got to 30 off 15 in the first six overs, taking the team total to 78/2. He finished with 54 off 26 – one of three half-centurions.

Though Saim Ayub departed early in the middle overs, Usman Khan and Kusal Perera took over. Perera made a 30-ball 50, hitting nine fours and five sixes between them. From 119/5, Perera and Glenn Maxwell added a whirlwind 108 off 59 deliveries, where the Aussie smashed eight fours and two sixes on his way to a 37-ball 70.

Maxwell and Hassan Khan spearheaded two 17-run overs at the death as the Kingsmen went from 175/5 in 15 overs to 244/6.

The only fight from Rawalpindiz came via the second-wicket partnership between Mohammad Rizwan and Usman Khawaja worth 43 runs. Khawaja ended up being a lone battler with an unbeaten 66 off 43, laced with nine fours. But eight of their batters fell for single-digit scores as medium pacer Hunain Shah finished with 4-22 in 3.1 overs. Left-arm quick Akif Javed bagged three as Rawalpindiz folded for 136 in the 18th over.

Brief Scores: Hyderabad Kingsmen 244/6 in 20 overs (Glenn Maxwell 70, Usman Khan 54, Kusal Perera 50; Saad Masood 2-34) beat Rawalpindiz 136 in 17.1 overs (Usman Khawaja 66*; Hunain Shah 4-22, Akif Javed 3-38) by 108 runs