Multan Sultans win toss, Multan Sultans win toss, opt to bat

DUBAI: Multan Sultans won the toss and opted to bat against Lahore Qalandars in today’s first game in Dubai.

Lahore’s nightmare has persisted: they have lost all six of their matches so far in the third season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL). In their last challenge against table-toppers Multan Sultans, they faced a 43-run beating.

Multan have won 4 out of their 7 matches, with two losses and one washout. Their batting depth and bowling combinations have stood out as their strengths in the tournament.

In stark contrast, Lahore, despite getting great starts in most of their matches, have failed to sustain their run rate in the middle overs. Although their bowling was being seen as one of the few positives, it was laid bare by Islamabad United yesterday, who won by 6 wickets with ease.

Multan Sultans

Head coach: Tom Moody

Captain: Shoaib Malik

Squad: Shoaib Malik (c), Ahmed Shehzad, Darren Bravo, Abdullah Shafique, Saif Badar, Nicholas Pooran, Kumar Sangakkara, Sohaib Maqsood, Kashif Bhatti, Shan Masood, Thisara Perera, Mohammad Abbas, Umar Siddiq, Ross Whiteley, Imran Tahir, Junaid Khan, Mohammad Irfan, Sohail Tanvir, Umar Gul, Hardus Viljoen-

Lahore Qalandars

Head coach: Aqib Javed

Captain: Brendon McCullum

Squad: Brendon McCullum (c), Fakhar Zaman, Umar Akmal, Dinesh Ramdin, Anton Devcich, Bilal Asif, Cameron Delport, Bilawal Bhatti, Aamer Yamin, Ghulam Mudassar, Mitchell McClenaghan, Mustafizur Rahman, Sunil Narine, Raza Hasan, Shaheen Afridi, Sohail Khan, Yasir Shah